Mr. Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment his Department has made of the impact of the delay to single farm payments on the farm machinery business; and if he will make a statement. [84613]
Barry Gardiner: UK tractor registrations, a broad indicator of the strength of the domestic market for agricultural equipment, have increased marginally in the first half of 2006. However, individual businesses may, to varying effects, have been affected in the short term by the cash flow issues faced by farmers as a result of the timing of payments under the 2005 single payment scheme (SPS).
Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many people were employed by his Department to carry out on-road inspections of transporters carrying vertebrate animals in each of the last five years. [86354]
Mr. Bradshaw: The Department does not hold the information requested. Roadside checks are arranged by local authorities, to check compliance with a range of animal health and welfare rules. The state veterinary service liaises with local authorities so that emergency veterinary cover can be made available if needed.
Mr. Salmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what funding the Government incorporates into its animal health strategy for the rescue and care of abandoned, wounded and homeless animals. [86871]
Mr. Bradshaw: [holding answer 20 July 2006]: While the Government applauds the fine work undertaken by animal welfare charities in rescuing and caring for abandoned, wounded and homeless animals, it does not use public money to directly fund such work. However, we do have policies in place to increase the value of charitable gifts by generous tax concessions.
Mr. Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to inform the public of their rights under the Arhus Convention. [85491]
Ian Pearson: The Government recognises that the Aarhus Convention is an important statement, at international level, of the rights of the public to be involved in decisions which have significant environmental effects. The UK’s ratification of the convention, in February 2005, demonstrates our commitment to the importance of these principles. A comprehensive guide can be found on the DEFRA website at: http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/internat/aarhus/index.htm
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures are in place to remove barriers to the market development of biomass energy crops; and what further measures are planned. [86116]
Ian Pearson: The Government provide support to help establish, develop supply chains, and create markets for biomass energy crops. The Government set up a Biomass Task Force in 2004 to identify the barriers to developing biomass energy and to recommend ways to overcome the problems.
Anne Snelgrove: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many prosecutions have been brought by each local authority in England under section 3 of the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005 since the Act came into force. [86149]
Mr. Bradshaw: Measures contained in section 3 of the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act, which concern exposing vehicles for sale on the road, commenced in June 2005.
Mr. Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations he has received regarding the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act 2005. [87766]
Mr. Bradshaw: The Department had received a range of representations on the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act, in the form of letters, emails and parliamentary questions.
Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what research his Department has conducted into (a) carbon emissions from commercial kitchens and (b) means to reduce such emissions; [84943]
Ian Pearson: The information available on carbon emissions from commercial kitchens is currently very limited.
(1) The top 10 per cent. of equipment, currently on the market, in terms of energy efficiency.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will list in date order (a) Green and (b) White Papers produced by his Department since October 2005. [81295]
Barry Gardiner: The following Command (“Green” and “White”) Papers have been produced by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, since October 2005.
| Paper number | Title | Publication date |
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will list the Unnumbered Command Papers produced by his Department in each Session since 1976; by what means (a) hon. Members and (b) members of the public can (i) inspect and (ii) obtain copies; and if he will make a statement. [81298]
Barry Gardiner: Documents which are laid before Parliament as unnumbered Command Papers are generally restricted to explanatory notes to treaties, explanatory memorandum to statutory instruments and some Treasury minutes. All other documents are published in the Numbered Command Papers series.
A complete list of unnumbered Command Papers can only be produced at disproportionate cost.
Copies of all unnumbered Command Papers are made available via the Vote Office.
Dr. Desmond Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps the Environment Agency takes to ensure that its charging policy is fair and equitable across its user groups. [87032]
Ian Pearson: The Environment Agency complies with Her Majesty's Treasury's “Fees and Charges Guide”, applies the polluter (or beneficiary) should pay principle, attributes relevant costs to specific charging regimes, and recovers those costs through charges.
Chris
Huhne: To ask the
Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs which
environmental
directives have been agreed and published sinceMay 1997; and
what the date or expected date of transposition is of each.
[84060]
Ian Pearson: DEFRA was formed in June 2001. Between 8 June 2001 and 30 June 2006, 30 EU environmental directives, for which the Department has responsibility for implementation, were adopted. These are shown in the table as follows.
I am placing in the Library of the House a list which itemises the directives adopted together with:
(a) the EU deadline for transposition into domestic legislation.
(b) where, appropriate, the final or expected United Kingdom transposition date.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether his Department (a) is committed to the achievement of environmental management to ISO 14001 standard and (b) has been externally certified as in compliance with that standard; and if he will make a statement. [81183]
Barry Gardiner: DEFRA is firmly committed to the achievement of environmental management systems ISO 14001 standard in its buildings. A programme of independent accreditation to that standard is under way. The priority is for our larger sites to achieve accreditation and at the end of June, a total of 27 sites (offices and laboratories), covering 78 per cent. of staff in the Department and its Executive Agencies, were accredited to ISO 14001. Three further sites covering eight per cent. of staff in the Department have Environmental Management Systems in place, which are yet to be independently certified to the standard.
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 18 April 2006 to the hon. Member for Winchester (Mr. Oaten), Official Report, column 24W, on farm subsidies, whether the former Chief Executive of the Rural Payments Agency remains on paid leave of absence; when a decision on his future will be made; and if he will make a statement. [73215]
Barry Gardiner: As a priority, Defra appointed an interim Chief Executive of the RPA to lead the organisation through the next period, and work has already begun to strengthen the senior management team. The former CEO of the RPA is currently on paid leave and we are in the process of resolving his employment issues through the proper legal procedures in line with the Departments HR good practice.
Mr. Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he expects the Single Payment Scheme funds for the period between December 2005 and February 2006 to be paid. [85413]
Barry Gardiner: The EU regulatory payment window for 2005 Single Payment Scheme ran from 1 December 2005 to 30 June 2006. The Rural Payments Agency began to make payments to English farmers in February 2006 and by 30 June over £1.438 billion (94.9 per cent. of total estimated expenditure) had been disbursed. The remaining sums will be paid as soon as possible.
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what share of the EU Fisheries Fund agreed on 19 June will be allocated to (a) the UK and (b) each other EU member state. [86469]
Mr. Bradshaw: The European Fisheries Fund, which will replace the current Financial Instrument for Fisheries Guidance (FIFG) from 1 January 2007, will run for seven years with a total budget of €3.849 billion. We anticipate that the UK will be allocated about €122 million. However, the Council regulation has not completed its formal procedures so the figure is subject to confirmation. Therefore the Department does not yet hold specific information relating to other member states.
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs pursuant to the answer of 4 May 2006, Official Report, columns 1729-30W, what report his Department has made to the European Commission on by-catch monitoring under the obligations of Council Regulation (EC) 812/2004. [87342]
Mr. Bradshaw: The UK Government’s report to the European Commission, on by-catch monitoring, is available on the Defra website at: http://www.defra. gov.uk/fish/sea/conserve/regulation.htm.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when the full updating of the National Flood and Coastal Defence database will be completed. [86366]
Ian Pearson: The National Flood and Coastal Defence database has been developed in a number of phases. The latest development means that it can now hold data on structures that help control coastal erosion as well as flood defences, and it is now live and available to staff in both the Environment Agency and the operating authorities. Further development will be planned to meet evolving needs.
Mr. Todd: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what his Department's expenditure has been on flood defences in 2006-07; and if he will make a statement. [86075]
Ian Pearson: The Environment Agency (EA) are the principal operating authority with responsibility for flood risk management in England. Defra has provided £141 million to the EA in grant in aid in 2006-07 up to the end of July. This supports capital improvement projects, maintenance and operation of existing infrastructure, and associated activities such as flood warning, public awareness of flood risk and advising planning authorities with respect to development in areas at risk of flooding.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment the Environment Agency has made of the flood defence systems in Robertsbridge, East Sussex; and if he will make a statement. [86887]
Ian Pearson: The Environment Agency’s current assessment of the Robertsbridge flood defence systems are that they are in very good condition and able to function in accordance with the design.
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what genetically modified crops are licensed to be grown in the UK. [87519]
Ian Pearson: Only one type of genetically modified (GM) maize seed, Monsanto's MON 810, is currently approved and being made available for commercial cultivation in the European Union. MON 810 is not suitable for UK growing conditions.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what representations he has received from animal welfare organisations on the decision by the greyhound racing industry to pursue self-regulation; and if he will make a statement. [86535]
Mr. Bradshaw: The Department has received representations from a number of animal welfare organisations about regulating greyhound racing.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will reconsider the decision not to include proposals for statutory provision for greyhound racing in the Animal Welfare Bill. [87343]
Mr. Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps are being taken to promote the welfare of retired greyhounds. [87137]
Mr.
Bradshaw: The Animal Welfare Bill, currently before
Parliament, will introduce an offence of failing to provide for the
welfare needs of an animal. This will apply to owners and keepers of
all animals, including racing, and retired greyhounds. In addition, we
are considering making specific regulations under the
Animal Welfare Bill in relation to the welfare of racing greyhounds. We
consider that these regulations are better contained in secondary
legislation rather than on the face of the
Bill.
Mr. Wills: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many racing greyhounds were killed at the end of their working lives in each of the last five years. [87402]
Mr. Bradshaw: The Government do not hold such information.
Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what compensation is available for Norfolk poultry farmers whose poultry has been culled as a consequence of the outbreak of the H7N3 virus. [68649]
Mr. Bradshaw [holding answer 8 May 2006]: Under the Animal Health Act 1981, compensation is payable for all healthy birds culled for disease control purposes; the amount is the value of the bird immediately before slaughter. This applies to all birds suffering from any strain of avian influenza, regardless of whether it is of high or low pathogenicity. We also provide compensation for eggs or other property that is destroyed.
Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if he will commit the Government to compliance with the ISO 14001 Environmental Management Standard. [85982]
Ian Pearson: On 12 June the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (David Miliband) announced new sustainable operations targets for the Government estate. Environmental management systems (EMS) are a key enabler in supporting improvements in operational performance on the estate, particularly in areas such as energy, water and waste. Therefore, the new targets included a commitment that all Government Departments should have an EMS in place, based, or modelled upon, a recognised system (such as ISO 14001, or the European regulation EMAS).
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what agreement he has reached with the Environment Agency on landfill licensing fees for small pet cemeteries; and if he will make a statement. [86594]
Mr. Bradshaw [holding answer 19 July 2006]: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 25 May 2006, Official Report, column 1915W.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what research he has (a) conducted and (b) commissioned into (i) the capability of farmers to continue to manage the landscape and (ii) possible further changes to the Single Farm Payment to encourage this. [85120]
Barry Gardiner: The Government are committed to conserving and enhancing the countryside and biodiversity and recognise the key role played by farmers and other land managers. The introduction of Environmental Stewardship (ES) in 2005 was recognition of the benefits that can be delivered by farming and provides funding to farmers ad other land managers in England who deliver effective environmental management on their land. Together with the introduction of cross-compliance conditions under the Single Payment Scheme (SPS), this will ensure that the English landscape continues to be protected and enhanced. It will also encourage the retention, if not expansion, of countryside management skills.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps are being taken (a) in England and (b) internationally to reduce the effects of methane emissions. [84239]
Ian Pearson: UK methane emissions between 1990 and 2004 fell by an estimated 50 per cent., mainly as a consequence of reductions in sectors such as waste, agriculture, coal mining and natural gas distribution.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he plans to publish details of the Government’s timetable for the introduction of mandatory regulations for nanotechnology products; and whether they will apply retrospectively for those products already on the market in the UK. [83267]
Ian Pearson: From a review the Department has undertaken and has published on the DEFRA website, I am assured that much of our current legislation addresses risks from materials regardless of their size. DEFRA has responsibility for the possible environmental risks from nanomaterials. If there are environmental risks which need controlling, irrespective of whether the cause of the risk is already marketed or not, they will be appropriately controlled and emergency powers are available if needed.
Mr. Fraser: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether any of the current functions of (a) English Nature and (b) the Countryside Agency will be discarded in the transfer of responsibilities to Natural England. [87072]
Barry Gardiner [holding answer 20 July 2006]: None of the current functions of English Nature or the Countryside Agency will be discarded in the transfer of responsibilities to Natural England, although some of the Countryside Agency’s responsibilities will transfer to the Commission for Rural Communities rather than to Natural England. We took the opportunity in the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act to consolidate and simplify the way in which the roles of these bodies have been described in legislation since the 1940’s. However the statutory purpose of Natural England is deliberately drawn widely to encompass everything which the predecessor bodies were able to do. It will, of course, be a matter for the Board of Natural England, in consultation with Ministers, to decide how to distribute its resources between its various functions.
Mr. Fraser: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what progress has been made in amalgamating English Nature and the Countryside Agency to form Natural England. [87074]
Barry Gardiner [holding answer 20 July 2006]: Significant progress has been made towards establishing Natural England. For over a year, the constituent bodies that are to form the new agency have been operating as a confederation of partners working together under a common overarching vision and purpose. In May this year we established Natural England as a “skeleton body”, with Chair, members and senior officers, to undertake preparatory work. In June, this skeleton body published a document setting out its “Strategic Direction”. Work is well underway on the remaining arrangements for Natural England to take on its full statutory functions on 1 October.
Mr. Fraser: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what new responsibilities Natural England will have in addition to those arising from the transfer of tasks from the Countryside Agency and English Nature. [87075]
Barry Gardiner [holding answer 20 July 2006]: In addition to the transfer of responsibilities from the Countryside Agency and English Nature, Natural England will also assume responsibility for the majority of the functions which are currently undertaken by DEFRA’s Rural Development Service. Principal among these is the administration of agri-environment schemes. The functions will be formally set out in an agreement, under part 8 of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006, between the Secretary of State and Natural England.
Mr. Fraser: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how Natural England will co-ordinate its activities with other Government bodies with responsibilities for the natural environment, with particular reference to the Environment Agency. [87076]
Barry Gardiner [holding answer 20 July 2006]: Natural England will need to work effectively with a wide range of stakeholders at both the national and the regional level. Our Rural Strategy 2004 confirmed the particular importance we attach to the need for Natural England, the Forestry Commission and the Environment Agency to work closely together. A Memorandum of Understanding was agreed in September 2005 setting out how this could be achieved and it was a subject of lively debate during the passage of the Natural Environment and Rural Communities Bill. The first major collaborative project between Natural England and the Environment Agency, on catchment sensitive farming, has begun.
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on how many occasions he has visited each region in an official capacity in the last 12 months. [83974]
Barry Gardiner: Since his appointment my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has visited the South East three times, and the North West, the South West, and the West Midlands each once. In addition he has undertaken numerous engagements in London.
Mr. Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the levels of carbon emissions relating to onshore windfarms. [86888]
Malcolm Wicks: I have been asked to reply.
Once a windfarm has been commissioned it produce no carbon emission.
A copy of the full report can be downloaded from their website. http://www.sd-commission.org.uk
Mr. Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to prevent the habitat of the orang-utan being destroyed in (a) Malaysia, (b) Indonesia and (c) other countries by the increased use of palm oil. [83595]
Barry Gardiner: The Government are very conscious that increasing consumption of goods and services in the UK can have environmental and social consequences overseas. Defra is commissioning research on the environmental impacts of internationally sourced commodity production, and palm oil is one of the commodities being investigated. The results of the research will inform future policy development in the UK and abroad.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent estimate he has made of the percentage of organic food sold in the UK which was produced in the UK; what powers the UK has to check the authenticity of organic food imported from abroad; and if he will make a statement. [85947]
Barry Gardiner: It is estimated that overall the percentage of organic food sold in the UK which was produced in the UK increased from 30 per cent. in 2002, to 44 per cent. in 2005. For food which can be produced in the UK the estimate for 2005 is 62 per cent. The Soil Association (1)estimate that in 2005, 66 per cent. of the organic primary produce sold by multiple retailers was sourced in the UK
( 1 ) Source :
Organic Market Report 2006—published by the Soil Association—data collected by Soil Association from Tesco, Sainsburys and the Co-op.
Dr. Desmond Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs why the Environment Agency proposes to increase its charges to recreational boaters. [86295]
Barry
Gardiner: The Environment Agency has a significant backlog
of work on its waterways assets. Over the past year it has made
considerable capital
investment towards reducing the backlog but in order for waterways to
remain sustainable in the future, boaters will need to pay a fair and
proportionate contribution towards their upkeep.
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment the Government have made of the monitoring of the construction of onshore oil and gas pipelines on Sakhalin Island to ensure that it meets environmental standards; and how the information is verified. [87576]
Ian Pearson: The Government have been closely involved in the Sakhalin project from both an environmental and social viewpoint. There has been close monitoring of the onshore construction of oil and gas pipelines by the potential lender group, including the Export Credit Guarantee Department (ECGD) and the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). Officials from both ECGD and the Department for International Development have visited the island and some of the construction sites.
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what information his Department has received on how many rivers on Sakhalin Island were crossed with oil and gas pipelines as part of the Sakhalin II project outside the designated winter period detailed in the River Crossing Strategy. [87577]
Ian Pearson: The designated winter period for crossing rivers as part of the Sakhalin II project is1 December to 30 April.
http://www.sakhalinenergy.com/en/proiect.asp?p=rc_list.
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures his Department has taken to ensure that there are sufficient safeguards in place to prevent a net loss of salmon spawning area on Sakhalin Island as a result of construction activities by the Sakhalin II consortium; and if he will make a statement. [87578]
Ian Pearson: The Department has gathered information to ensure there are safeguards in place to prevent a net loss of salmon spawning area on Sakhalin Island. Information gathered on the effect of the Sakhalin II project on salmon spawning habitats includes:
Official and ministerial meetings with Shell;
Information included in Sakhalin Energy's River Crossing Strategy;
Monitoring information published by Sakhalin Energy on its website;
Information gathered during site visits carried out by Export Credits Guarantee Department (ECGD) and other potential lenders and their independent consultants.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (1) what recycling targets his Department has set for schools; and if he will make a statement; [86133]
Mr. Bradshaw: No recycling targets have been specifically set by the Government for schools. However, Defra does provide financial support for the operation of Eco-Schools, an international programme developed by the Foundation of Environmental Education (FEE) and managed in England by Environmental Campaigns (ENCAMS). Eco-Schools promotes environmental awareness around nine main themes, one of which is waste minimisation and recycling.
Mr. Letwin: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on what date the Sewage Sludge in Agriculture Regulations will be implemented. [86560]
Ian Pearson: The Sludge (Use in Agriculture) Regulations came into force in 1989. We have consulted on proposed revisions and are currently seeking views from stakeholders before making recommendations on how best to proceed.
Mr. Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs when he made the last assessment of the Six Day Movement rule; and if he will make a statement. [87002]
Mr. Bradshaw [holding answer 20 July 2006]: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given on 1 February 2006, Official Report, column 525W.
Mr. Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what steps his Department is taking to promote slow food. [84734]
Barry Gardiner: Under DEFRA's regional food strategy we have, since 2003, been providing an additional one million per year to support the quality regional food sector in England. Food from Britain (FFB) take the lead in the delivery of a national programme of activity that supports producers in the sector. In taking forward this programme of activities, which focuses on trade development, consumer awareness and business competitiveness, FFB work together with a range of organisations, including Slow Food UK.
Norman Baker: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether members of his Department with responsibility for the Central Point of Expertise on Timber (a) have visited and (b) have plans to visit (i) Malaysia, (ii) Finland and (iii) Tasmania; and if he will make a statement. [85505]
Barry Gardiner: An official from the Department with responsibility for the Central Point of Expertise on Timber has visited Finland and Malaysia on official business. There are currently no arrangements for a visit to Tasmania.
Dr. Iddon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many households in England are eligible for assistance under the Warm Front programme; and how the overall number of eligible households has changed as a result of revisions to qualifying benefits in each year since 2000. [82896]
Ian Pearson: According to the eligibility criteria for 2004-05, around 2.8 million households in the private sector were eligible for Warm Front.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what work has been carried out to establish the background levels of fluoxetine in the aquatic environment; and what estimate he has made of the amount of residues from (a) anti-depressant and (b) other drugs in the (i) livers, (ii) brains and (iii) muscle of fish. [84064]
Mr. Bradshaw: The Environment Agency has developed analytical methods for the detection of fluoxetine to levels of 0.002 microgrammes per litre (g/l) and norfluoxetine to 0.005 g/l. Monitoring was undertaken during 2005 downstream of a number of sewage works across England and Wales and fluoxetine (including norfluoxetine) was detected in 90 per cent. of the 39 samples. The average concentration detected was 0.017 g/l. An Environment Agency briefing on fluoxetine is available at: http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/commondata/acrobat/fluoextine_1068996.pdf
Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what recent assessment he has made of (a) levels of pre-tax profits and (b) increases in water charges imposed by water companies. [80614]
Ian Pearson: Water companies made profits of£2.1 billion in 2004-05. The Government recognises that companies have to pay a return on their capital. However, water companies can only increase their profits by becoming more efficient and delivering all their services at less cost. These savings are also passed to customers in lower bills when the next price limits are set.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much water on average was consumed by each person in England in the last year for which figures are available, broken down by water company. [84126]
Ian Pearson: Ofwat provides the Government with water consumption figures for England and Wales via the annual security of supply, leakage and the efficient use of water report. Household water consumption is expressed in litres per head per day.
The following table provides company estimates of average household consumption for 2004-05.
| 2004-05 | |
| Water and sewerage companies (WaSC) | |
| Notes:
1. Averages are weighted by population of unmeasured
households. 2. Excludes underground supply pipe
leakage. 3. The 2004-05 report can be accessed on the Ofwat
website at:
http://www.ofwat.gov.uk/aptrix/ofwat/publish.nsf/AttachmentsBy
Title/leakage04-05.pdf/$FILE/leakage_04-05.pdf | |
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much water consumption per head of population was planned by each water company in 2005-06. [84954]
Ian Pearson: All water companies in England and Wales prepared new water resources plans in 2004. The plans provided forecasts of per capita consumption (pcc) from 2005-06 to 2029-30. The following table shows pcc forecasts for 2005-06. These represent the theoretical average demand for water in a dry year, excluding the impact of any restrictions on water use. These numbers have been calculated from water companies’ forecasts of measured and unmeasured pcc.
| Water company | Forecast pcc in 2005-06 (litres/head/day) |
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much water was lost as a result of water leaks in London in each year since 1997. [87724]
Ian Pearson: Ofwat is the economic regulator for the water and sewerage industry in England and Wales. It collects leakage information from companies on their performance against these targets. This information is published annually in Ofwat’s ‘Security of supply, leakage and the efficient use of water report’.
Mr. Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what progress has been made towards bringing 95 per cent. of all nationally important wildlife sites into favourable condition by 2010. [85460]
Barry Gardiner: As of 3 July 2006, 72.7 per cent. of the area of England covered by sites of special scientific interest (SSSI) was in favourable or recovering condition, compared with 56.9 per cent. in March 2003. This is good progress towards England’s public service agreement target for SSSIs and in line with our trajectory to achieve 95 per cent. by 2010.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Leader of the House how many divisions were called off in each of the last three sessions due to failure to provide tellers; what the (a) date and (b) subject under discussion was in each case; and if he will make a statement. [87222]
Mr. Straw: The Journal Office of the House of Commons has supplied the following information for the last three Sessions, and for the current Session to date:
| Session | Date | Business |
| (1)
To 18 July
2006. | ||
Sarah Teather: To ask the Leader of the House whether he has examined the merits of enabling e-tabling of Early Day Motions; and if he will make a statement. [87730]
Mr. Straw: This is essentially a matter for the House. The Government are however aware of concerns about the principle of electronic tabling for parliamentary proceedings without strong safeguards to ensure that any new system is not open to abuse, and that the Member concerned is personally responsible at each stage. I understand that the Procedure Committee is currently examining matters relating to EDMs, including the procedures for their tabling. I look forward to the Committee's recommendations.
Anne Main: To ask the Leader of the House what steps he is taking to ensure that ministerial answers to parliamentary questions address the terms of the questions being asked. [87753]
Mr. Straw: In answering parliamentary questions, as in other areas, Ministers are subject to the obligations set out in the Ministerial Code, which states that:
"It is of paramount importance that Ministers give accurate and truthful information to Parliament... Ministers should be as open as possible with Parliament and the public, refusing to provide information only when disclosure would not be in the public interest".
Ministerial answers should reflect the terms of the questions asked.
Anne Main: To ask the Leader of the House if he will ask the Modernisation Committee to examine the degree to which the quality of replies to parliamentary questions enables Ministers to be held accountable by hon. Members. [88280]
Mr. Straw: I have no plans to do so. I understand that the Procedure Committee may be considering an inquiry into parliamentary questions later this year. The Public Administration Select Committee (and its predecessor the Public Service Committee) has conducted regular inquiries since 1995-96 into aspects of the answers to parliamentary questions.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what plans his Department has for improving the A13; what improvements were made to the A13 between Basildon and Southend-on-Sea during 2005; and if he will make a statement. [87256]
Dr. Ladyman: The A13 is the responsibility of the Secretary of State only between its junctions with the A1306 and A1089. We have no plans at present for improvements to this section of road. The remainder of the A13 is the responsibility of Southend on Sea borough council and Essex county council. Improvements to these sections of the road are therefore matters for these authorities. In his announcement of 6 July about Regional Funding Allocations, the Secretary of State approved entry into the programme of a scheme promoted by Essex county council for the improvement of the junction of A13 with A130 at Sadler’s Farm.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many (a) minor and (b) serious accidents occurred on the A13 between the A405 and the M25 in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available. [87258]
Dr. Ladyman: I presume the hon. Member means the A406. The number of serious and slight personal injury road accidents reported to the police on the A13 between the A406 and the M25 from 1996 to 2005 is given in the table.
| Accidents occurring on A13 between A406 and M25:1996-2005 | ||
| Serious | Slight | |
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much has been spent on properties purchased by the Highways Agency under compulsory purchase orders along the proposed A21 upgrade route. [86739]
Dr. Ladyman: No properties on this route have been compulsory purchased.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what assessment he has made of the environmental consequences of the proposed A21 upgrade. [87925]
Dr. Ladyman: The environmental consequences of the proposed A21 upgrade schemes are being assessed in accordance with the prescribed methodology set out in Volume 11 of the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what discussions he has had with residents in East Sussex regarding the proposed A21 upgrade. [87926]
Dr. Ladyman: The Highways Agency has had discussions with residents in East Sussex, regarding the proposed A21 upgrade, as part of public consultation undertaken from November 2002 onwards.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what role (a) Rother district council and (b) East Sussex county council have played in the proposed A21 upgrade. [87929]
Dr. Ladyman: Rother district council and East Sussex county council have participated in the A21 upgrade consultation processes that have taken place both prior to and following the publication of the Access to Hastings Multi Modal Study.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much the Highways Agency has spent on consultation fees while assessing the proposed A21 upgrade. [87930]
Dr. Ladyman: The Highways Agency spent £8,181.44 (ex-VAT) on the A21 upgrade consultation process that took place following the Access to Hastings Multi Modal Study.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many (a) fatal and (b) non-fatal traffic accidents there were in each London borough in each year since 1997. [87498]
Dr. Ladyman: The information requested has been placed in the Libraries of the House.
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many pedestrians have been (a) killed and (b) injured by vehicles in each of the last 10 years. [87123]
Dr. Ladyman: The number of pedestrians killed in personal injury road accidents reported to the police for the years up to 2004 is published in Table 2 of Road Casualties Great Britain: 2004. Pedestrian fatalities for 2005 are published in Table 1 of Road Casualties Great Britain: Main Results: 2005.
Copies of these publications are in the Libraries of the House.
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many road traffic accidents occurred on or near pedestrian crossings in each year since 1997; and how many of these accidents involved the (a) death and (b) injury of pedestrians. [87124]
Dr. Ladyman: The number of personal injury road accident reported to the police that occurred on or within 50 m of a pedestrian crossing facility, and those that involved a pedestrian death or injury are given in the table.
| Accidents on or within 50 m of a pedestrian crossing facility: 1997-2005 | |||
| All accidents | Accidents involving pedestrian death | Accidents involving pedestrian injury | |
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many hit-and-run incidents there have been in each London borough in each of the last five years. [86772]
Dr. Ladyman: The number of personal injury road accidents reported to the police which involved one or more hit and run drivers or riders for the years 2001-05, in each London borough is given in the table.
| Number of personal injury accidents involving one or more hit and run drivers/riders by London borough: 2001-05 | |||||
| Number of accidents | |||||
| 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | |
| Source: Transport for London | |||||
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many traffic accidents there were involving (a) pedestrians, (b) buses, (c) trams and (d) cyclists in London in each year since 1997. [87499]
Dr. Ladyman: The number of personal injury accidents reported to the police involving (a) pedestrian casualties, (b) buses, (c) trams and (d) cyclists in London in each year since 1997 are given in the following table.
| Personal injury accidents by vehicle type: London: 1997-2005 | ||||
| Number of accidents | ||||
| With pedestrian casualties | Involving a bus or coach | Involving a tram( 1) | Involving pedal cycles | |
| (1)
Data for accidents involving trams is only available from 1999
onwards Source: Transport for London | ||||
Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many sleep-related traffic accidents occurred on motorways in each of the past three years; how many (a) deaths and (b) serious injuries were incurred; and what steps his Department is taking to reduce the incidence of such accidents. [87584]
Dr. Ladyman: I refer to my answers to thehon. Member for South Swindon (Anne Snelgrove) of 28 November 2005, Official Report, column 153W and to the hon. Member for Southend, West (Mr. Amess) of 3 July 2006, Official Report, column 740W.
Mr. Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will introduce legislation to make it a requirement for all bicycles to be fitted with bells at all times whilst being ridden. [87358]
Dr. Ladyman: Bells are currently required to be fitted at the point of sale of a bicycle, but there is no obligation to retain the bell when the cycle is in use, or indeed for the bell to be used.
I would of course undertake a public consultation before making any proposal to amend regulations.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many collisions of boats there were on the River Thames in each of the last five years. [87786]
Dr. Ladyman: For each of the five years from 2001 to 2005 the total numbers of collisions involving all types of craft in the Thames area recorded by the Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) are:
| Number | |
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many boat licences were granted in each London borough in each year since 1997. [87501]
Dr. Ladyman: This information is not held by the Department for Transport.
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the pass rate was in each of the last three financial years for driving tests conducted by the Driving Standards Agency examiners on bus driver candidates; and how many bus driver candidates passed in each year. [87858]
Dr. Ladyman: The following table shows PCV (bus) tests conducted, number of passes and the pass rate for the last three financial years. Only tests conducted by DSA examiners are included.
| Number tests | Number passes | Pass rate (percentage) | |
Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to his Answer of 27 June 2006, Official Report, column 258W, on cargo transfers, what guidance his Department has issued to harbour authorities on applying for (a) Harbour Revision Orders and (b) other orders under the Harbours Act 1964; and whether such guidance applies only in England and Wales. [87808]
Dr. Ladyman: The Department has published advice on the procedures for obtaining Harbour Orders on the Department's website at
http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_shipping/documents/page/dft_shipping_611467.hcsp.
The guidance applies only to England and Wales.
Mr. Brazier: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what studies he has undertaken on the likely impact of Crossrail on the Heathrow Express. [86265]
Derek Twigg [holding answer 18 July 2006]: The report of the Crossrail Timetable Working Group, published on 22 June 2006, considers the impact of Crossrail services on existing rail services and future services allowing for growth, including Heathrow Express. A copy of the report can be found on my Department’s website:
http://www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_railways/documents/page/dft_railways_611918.pdf
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many (a) fatal, (b) serious and (c) slight injuries suffered by cyclists on (i) urban roads and (ii) rural roads in each year since 2003 resulted from collisions involving (A) at least one motor vehicle, (B) no motor vehicles and (C) powered two-wheel vehicles. [87211]
Dr. Ladyman: The information requested is given in the table. The figures relate to casualties in personal injury road accidents reported to the police.
| Cyclist Casualties on Urban and Rural Roads, by Vehicle Involved in an Accident: 2003-05 | ||||
| Accidents involving: | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | |
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many people have (a) died and (b) received serious head injuries as a result of a cycling accident in each of the last 10 years. [87212]
Dr. Ladyman: The number of fatalities in personal injury road accidents reported to the police involving cyclists is given in the table.
| Fatalities in accidents involving a cyclist, Great Britain, 1996-2005 | |
| Number | |
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what arrangements for conducting tests and keeping proper records have to be in place before he will grant his approval to the appointment of delegated examiners. [87836]
Dr. Ladyman: Before an organisation is approved to use delegated examiners it is visited by the local Supervising Driving Examiner. This is to confirm that all the necessary arrangements are in place to ensure that driving tests are conducted fairly and properly and under similar conditions to those conducted by DSA’s own examiners.
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether the Driver Standards Agency has a dedicated team of people who supervise the operations of Passenger Carrying Vehicle delegated examiners. [87844]
Dr. Ladyman: The Driving Standards Agency's (DSA) sector managers are responsible for supervising delegated examiners. All sector managers are supervising driving examiners who undertake this quality assurance work as part of their general standards maintenance duties. DSA has 38 sector managers in post.
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many staff in the Driver Standards Agency work solely on conducting supervised Passenger Carrying Vehicle delegated examiner check tests. [87845]
Dr. Ladyman: None. The 38 sector managers in the Driving Standards Agency undertake this quality assurance work as part of their general standards maintenance duties.
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether research has been undertaken by his Department into the effectiveness and safety of Passenger Carrying Vehicle delegated examiners conducting tests. [87851]
Dr. Ladyman: No research has been undertaken.
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when passenger carrying vehicle delegated examiners were first introduced. [87852]
Dr. Ladyman: Delegated examiners for the passenger carrying transport industry were introduced by a predecessor to the Department for Transport at least 30 years ago. Responsibility for the scheme passed to the Driving Standards Agency when the Agency was established in September 1990.
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what fee is charged by the Driving Standards Agency (DSA) to train a passenger carrying vehicle (PCV) delegated examiner; and what income DSA has earned from training PCV delegated examiners in each of the last three financial years. [87853]
Dr. Ladyman: The charge for each full four-week course is £4,000 per trainee. Trainees who need to repeat only part of the course pay a proportional fee.
| £ | |
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many actual supervised (check) driving tests the Driving Standards Agency undertook on passenger carrying vehicle delegated examiners in each the last three financial years; and how many tests were cancelled in each year. [87855]
Dr. Ladyman: 78 supervisory tests were conducted during the period 2005-06. No data about supervisory tests was collected before that time.
No supervisory tests have been cancelled.
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the number of drivers aged (a) 18 to 21 and (b) over 60 years in (i) 1980, (ii) 1990 and (iii) 2005 expressed (A) as a number and (B) as a proportion of the driving population. [87361]
Dr. Ladyman: The following table gives the number of people aged 18 to 21 and over 60 who hold a full driving licence and the proportion of the total number of licence holders in these age groups in 1985-86, 1989-91 and 2004, based on data from the National Travel Survey.
| Number of full driving licence holders and proportion of total licence holders aged 18 to 21 years and over 60 years | |||
| 1985-86 | 1989-91 | 2004 | |
Mr. Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what representations his Department has received on the second EC Directive on driving licences, 91/439/EEC. [85986]
Dr. Ladyman: The second EC Directive on driving licences, 91/439/EEC, which was implemented in Great Britain on 1 January 1997, covers a very wide range of subjects relating to driving licensing matters. The Department for Transport receives many enquiries and representations on matters relating to the provisions of this directive.
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the cost to date is of the Driving Standards Agency’s Driving Safety Forward agenda. [87838]
Dr. Ladyman: Cost to date of the Driving Safety Forward project is £349,978.70 (excluding VAT) paid to the Agency’s consultants, Symbia.
This excludes costs for staff time which have not been apportioned specifically to the project.
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport why there was no competitive tender for the contract for the Driving Safety Forward agenda; and how EU procurement rules were complied with in this instance. [87839]
Dr. Ladyman: Competitive tenders for the organisational review consultancy were invited from “OGC Buying.Solutions’” framework contractors. Seven tenders were received.
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the end date is for the contract with Symbia Ltd. for the Driver Standards Agency's Driving Safety Forward agenda. [87840]
Dr. Ladyman: In accordance with the latest contract variation, the end date of the contract with Symbia Ltd. is 29 September 2006.
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what (a) consultants and (b) contractors have been employed by the Driving Standards Agency in each of the last three financial years; what type of work each carried out; and how much was spent on each in each year. [87837]
Dr. Ladyman: A table has been placed in the Libraries of the House which shows information about consultants employed by the Driving Standards Agency in the last three financial years.
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the average waiting time for a driving test was (a) in England and (b) broken down by (i) region and (ii) test centre in each of the last five years. [85810]
Dr. Ladyman: Available figures for number of weeks waiting time nationally, and in each DSA region, in each of the last five years are as follows:
| Number of weeks | |||||
| 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
Mr. Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) how many full-time equivalent staff are working on implementing and administering EU directives, regulations and policies in his Department; [86758]
Dr. Ladyman: Implementation and administration of EU directives, regulations and policies is an important part of the work of the Department for Transport and we seek to do this in a timely and efficient way consistent with the principles of better regulation. Implementation and administration of EU policy is generally carried out by staff as part of their wider work and activity is not broken down in this way. The information requested could therefore be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Clappison: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he was first informed of the plans of First Capital Connect to prevent use of cheap day return tickets on former Thameslink services serving Hertfordshire; what representations he made to First Capital Connect about these plans; and whether he took these plans into account in his decision to award the relevant franchise to First Capital Connect. [83563]
Derek Twigg: The First Capital Connect bid included a proposal to restrict the use of day return fares during the evening peak on certain routes. Day returns are fares that are not regulated and it is for operators to decide whether to offer them, at what price and with what restrictions.
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps he is taking to ensure that there are adequate controls on issuing certificates of equivalent competency for foreign officers serving on UK ships. [87548]
Dr. Ladyman: I have asked the Chief Executive of the Maritime and Coastguard Agency to establish a working group, including representatives from the shipping industry and trade unions, to examine these issues.
Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how much funding the Government are providing to West Lancashire district council to provide free bus travel for (a) older and (b) disabled persons; and whether it plans to use all of this funding to provide free travel. [83466]
Gillian Merron: The funding for concessionary fares is provided through revenue support grant which is unhypothecated; therefore the funding for concessionary fares is not separately identified. It is for local authorities to deicide on their overall funding priorities based on their judgment of local need and circumstances.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what percentage of cars owned by the Government Car and Despatch Agency come with air conditioning as standard. [87932]
Dr. Ladyman: 99.04 per cent. of the Government Car and Despatch Agency’s car fleet has air conditioning as standard.
Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the original estimate of cost was for the Great Barford by-pass; and what the anticipated outturn of expenditure is. [87431]
Dr. Ladyman: The original estimated cost of the scheme at TPI entry in 1998 was £25 million and excluded VAT, ‘optimism bias’ projected inflation and revising costs in line with the road construction price index.
David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the total expenditure on highways in Haltemprice and Howden constituency was in each of the last two financial years; and what the average figure was per constituency in each year. [88592]
Dr. Ladyman: Expenditure on highways (both by local authorities and the Highways Agency) cannot be disaggregated to constituency level except at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many motorists killed in road accidents in each of the last five years had traces of illegal drugs in their bodies. [87485]
Dr. Ladyman: This information is not available. A study of fatal accident victims during the period 1996-2000 showed that in a sample of 779 drivers and riders killed, 17 per cent. had traces of illegal drugs. In 8 per cent. of the sample the drug detected was cannabis, traces of which remain detectable in the body long after consumption.
Mr. Chope: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the number of motorists who drove with illegal drugs in their bodies in the last 12 months. [87486]
Dr. Ladyman: No such estimate is made by the Department. A 2004 European Commission study “Impaired motorists: methods of roadside testing and assessment for licensing” co-funded by member states, examined the prevalence of illegal drugs in drivers. The summary of the results of the UK element of that study are at www.dft.gov.uk/stellent/groups/dft_rdsafety/documents/page/dft_rdsafety_611649-03.hcsp#P58_ 5194. The full report is at www.immortal.or.at/
Mr. Leech: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he intends to publish the Government's guidance on light rail procurement. [87434]
Derek Twigg: We hope to publish guidance on light rail later this year.
Mr. Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of safety measures on the London Underground network in relation to protection against the threat of terrorism. [85257]
Gillian Merron [holding answer 17 July 2006]: The Department for Transport keeps the preventative transport security measures we require under regular review. Industry implementation of the measures is subject to an ongoing programme of compliance monitoring and enforcement by DFT inspectors.
Mr. Blunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when the concrete surface of the M25 between junctions 8 and 9 is to be replaced with quieter surfacing. [87082]
Dr. Ladyman: The M25 between junctions 8 and 9 will not require resurfacing for maintenance needs within the period of the Agency’s current five year forward programme. However when it does need to be resurfaced a quieter surfacing will be used as a matter of course.
Ms Butler: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what the forecast costs are of each Highways Agency major roads project; [88133]
Dr. Ladyman: The Chief Executive of the Highways Agency wrote to the Transport Select Committee in April 2006 with information on the latest ministerially approved budgets for major road schemes. I have placed the same data in the Libraries of the House. Since April the following changes have been approved:
| £ million | ||
| Previous approved budget cost | Latest approved budget cost | |
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate his Department has made of the economic effects of the implementation of the published scheme for improvements to the A303 Stonehenge in the first year after construction. [88240]
Dr. Ladyman: The Highways Agency's economic analysis of the A303 Stonehenge scheme is based on an assumed start of construction in 2008. On this assumption, it is estimated that in the first year after construction (2013) of the published scheme there would be travel time savings of between £3.495 million at low growth and £6.317 million at high growth. In addition, there would be safety benefits (resulting from a reduction in accidents) of between £2.035 million at low growth and £2.211 million at high growth.
Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he will publish a consultation document on regulations governing motorway service areas. [87583]
Dr. Ladyman: I have asked the Highways Agency to undertake a review of policy on roadside facilities, including motorway service areas. As part of the review process we shall be carrying out a public consultation exercise. It is anticipated that this consultation will commence shortly.
Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what mechanism is used to grant consent to new oil handling facilities (a) within harbour authority areas and (b) elsewhere in UK internal and territorial waters. [87809]
Dr. Ladyman: There is no single mechanism for the granting of consent to new oil handling facilities. There are a range of possible consent regimes for such facilities, dependant upon where they are, whether there are new works involved and the extent to which there are existing powers available to the authorities involved.
John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many of the comments received in response to the Maritime and Coastguard Agency’s consultation on oil spill contingency plans covering ship-to-ship transfers of oil in the Firth of Forth were categorised as not relevant; what proportion of such comments related to the effects of oil spill plan amendments in combination with effects of the proposed transfers; whether these comments will be made available to Forth Ports to assist them in assessing the transfer proposals under regulation 3 of the Conservation (Natural Habitats etc) Regulations 1994; and whether these comments will be published. [86736]
Dr. Ladyman: This information was placed on the Maritime and Coastguard Agency website on the14 July 2006 in the form of a Responses Consultation Table and a Summary Analysis of Consultee Responses. The website address for these documents is:
http://www.mcga.gov.uk/c4mca/mcga-guidance-requlation/mcga -consultations/mcga-current_consultations/mcga-consultations-sts_forth/mcga-consultations-sts_outcome.htm
All comments relevant to the consultation process have been included in these documents.
John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the timetable is for the Maritime and Coastguard Agency to report to him following its consultation on (a) the implications for European wildlife sites of the proposed changes to Forth Ports oil contingency plans and (b) the other documents on which comment was invited in connection with ship-to-ship transfers of oil in the Firth of Forth; and what mechanism is proposed for making the findings public. [86737]
Dr. Ladyman: The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) announced on 14 July 2006 its intention to approve the Oil Spill Contingency Plan covering Ship-to-Ship (STS) transfers in the Firth of Forth submitted by the harbour authority, and the harbour authority’s proposed amendments to the overarching Clearwater Forth contingency plan, subject to a number of specified changes being made.
John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many responses have been made by (a) statutory bodies, (b) non-governmental and community organisations and (c) private individuals to the Maritime and Coastguard Agency’s consultation on ship-to-ship transfers of oil in the Firth of Forth. [86738]
Dr. Ladyman: This information was placed on the Maritime and Coastguard Agency website on the 14 July 2006 in the form of a Responses Consultation Table and a Summary Analysis of Consultee Responses. The website address for these documents is:
http://www.mcga.gov.uk/c4mca/mcga-quidance-requlation/mcga-consultations/mcga-current_consultations/mcga-consultations-sts_forth/mcga-consultations-sts_outcome.htm
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what changes he plans to make to the existing regulations in respect of the working hours of professional drivers; and if he will make a statement. [86948]
Dr. Ladyman: A new, directly applicable, EU regulation on drivers' hours has recently been adopted by the EU institutions—it was published in the Official Journal in April 2006 and will, for the most part, come into force in April 2007.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which railway lines in England and Wales are under consideration for reopening; and what his policy is on the reopening of railway lines. [85533]
Derek Twigg: In July next year we will publish our High Level Output Specification. This will set out the railway outputs the Government wish to buy in terms of capacity, safety and reliability and the funding to support this for the next five years. It is for the industry to determine what inputs are needed to deliver this.
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what solutions he has identified to overcrowding on the railways. [82505]
Derek Twigg: We are currently seeing huge growth in the railways, with more than a billion passengers carried last year, and this is set to continue. To help meet this challenge we are investing record amounts in the network.
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the cost to date is of the development of the new Integrated Register of Driver Training system; and how much of the expenditure went to Capita. [87841]
Dr. Ladyman: The software development cost to date for the Integrated Register of Driver Trainers is £1,140,000 including VAT.
All of this expenditure will go to Capita.
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many (a) change of control notices and (b) variation orders have been issued by the Driver Standards Agency in the development of the new Integrated Register of Driver Training system; and what the cost of each is. [87842]
Dr. Ladyman: 16 change control notices (CCNs) have been approved to date at a total cost of £332,470 including VAT. We are negotiating the costs of other variations and will issue further CCNs. The following table lists the cost and the number of individual variations covered in each of the CCNs agreed to date:
| CCN | Change Requests/Variations (Number) | Cost (excluding VAT) (£) |
| (1)
Various security-related
variations. | ||
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the (a) estimated cost of and (b) timetable for developing the Integrated Register of Driver Training is; and whether each has changed since the project was established. [87843]
Dr. Ladyman: The estimated software development cost for the Integrated Register of Driver Trainers is £2,400,000 including VAT. The initial estimate when the project was established was £1,090,000 including VAT but this was based upon a very basic definition of the system. This definition changed significantly as the detailed requirements were identified during the course of the project.
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the (a) original estimated cost of and (b) most recent cost estimates are for (i) Highways Agency schemes in the Targeted Programme of Improvements and (ii) all local authority schemes approved through the local transport plans. [86139]
Dr. Ladyman: For Highways Agency schemes, I refer the hon. Member to my answer today to the hon. Member for Brent, East (Sarah Teather).
Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which road schemes were commenced by the Highways Agency in the Eastern Region in each year from 1999-2000 to 2005-06; and what the (a) original estimated cost, (b) final outturn cost, (c) original completion date and (d) actual completion date was of each project. [87432]
Dr. Ladyman: The following table lists all major road schemes, located in the Eastern Region, that have started works each year since 2000-01. In addition to the major projects detailed, the Highways Agency delivers many maintenance and smaller scheme improvements costing less than £5 million. The Highways Agency does not hold information for these schemes in the requested format.
| Scheme | TPI entry cost (£ million) | Total estimated (£ million) | Projected completion date at TPI entry | Actual/latest estimated completion date |
Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many (a) harbours and (b) oil handling facilities are subject to the Merchant Shipping(Oil Pollution Preparedness, Response and Co-operation Convention) Regulations 1998; and what proportion are located within statutory harbour authorityareas. [87811]
Dr. Ladyman: There are 167 Merchant Shipping (Oil Pollution Preparedness, Response and Co-operation Convention) Regulations 1998 Oil Spill Contingency Plans approved by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency.
159 of the 167 plans are harbour authority plans.
Eight of the 167 plans are stand alone oil handling facility plans within a harbour authority.
Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how proposals to regulate Ship-to-Ship Transfers of oil and other cargoes in UK territorial waters will be implemented in harbour authority areas. [87813]
Dr. Ladyman: My officials are working on draft legislation which would control bunker transfers and Ship to Ship Transfers (STS) of oil or other hazardous and noxious substances carried as cargo in the UK's territorial sea and internal waters. It is not intended to apply the regulations to cover operations in statutory harbour areas.
Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he next expects to review the stopping distances quoted within the Highway Code; and if he will make a statement. [88153]
Dr. Ladyman: The Department is currently considering major revisions to the Highway Code, following the public consultation which ended on12 May 2006. We intend to publish the new edition of the code in spring 2007, subject to parliamentary approval. Stopping distances quoted in the code will be considered as part of the revision.
Mr. Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the cost of electricity for street lighting on national roads supervised by the Highways Agency was in the most recent year for which figures are available. [86966]
Dr. Ladyman: For the financial year ending31 March 2006 the gross spend, including VAT, on street lighting on the roads for which the Highways Agency is responsible, was £9.1 million.
Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will make a statement on the progress of the Thameslink 2000 project. [88157]
Dr. Ladyman: The Department for Transport and the Department for Communities and local government are currently considering the Inspector's report of the public inquiry held last year into the Thameslink 2000 project. Decisions on the various applications made by Network Rail in relation to this project will be announced as soon as is reasonably possible.
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what the total volume of traffic in the Peterborough city council area was in each year since 2001; and what the percentage change has been over that period. [88198]
Dr. Ladyman: The following table gives the information requested:
| Estimates of traffic volume, and year-on-year percentage change, in the Peterborough city council area: 2001 to 2005 | ||
| All motor vehicles (million vehicle kilometres) | Year on year percentage change (percentage) | |
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what expenditure on transport infrastructure schemes to support economic regeneration his Department is considering in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly; what the schemes are; how much of the expenditure will come from public funds; and when he expects decisions to be made. [87609]
Gillian Merron: The Department is currently considering two proposals for funding transport infrastructure put forward by Cornwall to support economic regeneration. The first concerns the transfer of RAF St. Mawgan from a military civilian airport (Newquay airport). The second is a new combined freight and passenger vessel to operate between Penzance and the Isles of Scilly, plus harbour improvements at Penzance and St. Mary's.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what recent discussions he has had with the Parliamentary Advisory Committee on Transportation Safety; what note was kept of each meeting; and if he will make a statement. [81245]
Dr. Ladyman: The Secretary of State has not met the Parliamentary Advisory Committee on Transport Safety (PACTS). The Minister of State gave the ministerial response to a PACTS Westminster lecture in December last year and addressed a joint reception organised by the hon. Member for Northampton, North (Ms Keeble) and PACTS on 5 July. He also met with the hon. Member for Stafford (Mr. Kidney) who was accompanied by the executive director of PACTS in May, to discuss the Road Safety Bill.
A note of that meeting is kept by the Department.
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport (1) what steps he is taking to increase the number of UK seafarers working regularly at sea and the number of new entrant trainees; [87547]
Dr. Ladyman: I am considering the advice of the Shipping Task Force sub-group that was formed to propose measures to improve the maritime employment environment. The advice of the sub-group includes measures linked to both the training and employment of UK seafarers. I will make an announcement in due course.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many (a) low emission cars, (b) cars, (c) sports utility vehicles and (d) motorcycles are owned per person in London. [87783]
Dr. Ladyman: The following table is derived from DVLA data on vehicle registrations. It provides details of vehicles registered to keepers located in Greater London, compared with Greater London’s population aged 17 or over. Some of the vehicles included, especially company cars, will be registered to London addresses but not driven in London.
| Vehicles registered per 1,000 adults in Greater London at the end of 2005 | |
| Number | |
11. Mr. Dunne: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what contribution he expects British armed forces to make to the Prime Minister's proposed international force to be sent to Lebanon. [87194]
Mr. Ingram: Firstly, I would like to pay tribute to those members of the armed forces, and their partners and families, who have contributed in any way to the evacuation of UK and other nationals from Lebanon over recent days. The evacuation was conducted with the utmost professionalism, under difficult conditions, with the safety of evacuees paramount at all times. I should also like to convey my thanks to those members of the FCO and the MOD who have been involved in the evacuation. I offer all those involved my personal congratulations on a job well done.
12. Lynda Waltho: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps British military personnel are taking to help to prevent conflicts in Africa. [87195]
Mr. Ingram: UK armed forces personnel are playing an important role in helping prevent conflict in Africa, by building peace support capacity and teaching the principles of good governance and the democratic accountability of armed forces. British military personnel are providing training and technical assistance to the African Union, to African regional organisations and peace support centres and bilaterally to key partner countries such as Kenya, South Africa, Nigeria, Ghana and Sierra Leone, in order to help build long-term conflict prevention and peacekeeping capacity.
13. Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the involvement of British troops in the NATO deployment in Kosovo. [87196]
Mr. Ingram: The UK contribution to the NATO KFOR mission is around 180 troops, providing a highly effective force able to deploy across the whole of Kosovo. We remain committed to supporting NATO as they work alongside the UN Administrative Mission in Kosovo and the Kosovo Police Service. All of those responsible for security are working closely to maintain a safe and secure environment during the ongoing Final Status process.
14. David Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent assessment he has made of the quality of maintenance of forces' accommodation; and if he will make a statement. [87197]
Mr. Watson: The Government attach a high priority to the quality of life of Service personnel and their families and are committed to improving and maintaining the quality of accommodation provided to them to the highest standards.
15. Dr. Murrison: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether it is the Government's policy to maintain the nuclear deterrent in the long-term. [87199]
Des Browne: We made it clear in our manifesto at the 2005 General Election that we are committed to retaining the United Kingdom's independent nuclear deterrent. The Prime Minister has made clear that this commitment applies for the planned life of the current system. Decisions on the position beyond that point will be made later this year.
16. Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how long it takes to target Trident missiles when at sea. [87200]
Des Browne: All the United Kingdom’s Trident missiles have been de-targeted since 1994. The missiles can be targeted in sufficient time to meet any foreseeable requirement.
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many civil servants listed are working on Trident and nuclear weapons policy, broken down by grade. [86696]
Des Browne [holding answer 20 July 2006]: There are nine full-time civil servants in the Ministry of Defence working on Trident and nuclear weapons policy: 1 x Senior Civil Servant, 3 x Band B1s, 2 x Band B2s, 2 x Band Cs and 1 x Band E. They consult and engage others, as necessary.
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reason a discussion of a replacement for the Trident nuclear system was not included in the section on future capabilities of his Department's Annual Report and Accounts for 2005-06, HC 1394. [86924]
Des Browne: The Annual Report and Accounts 2005-06 is a retrospective document accounting forthe Department's use of the resources Parliament authorised for Defence against the performance baseline in the Departmental Plan 2005-09 reflecting the outcome of the 2004 Spending Review.
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what research work has been carried out to improve the (a) reliability, (b) performance, (c) longevity and (d) safety of the UK’s Trident nuclear warhead. [87169]
Des Browne: Since the introduction into service of the current Trident warhead in 1994, no research has been undertaken to improve its performance. Work continues, however, under the stockpile stewardship programme at AWE to underwrite the continued reliability, longevity, and safety of our Trident warheads.
17. Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many new recruits have joined the Army in the last two years, broken down by region of origin. [87201]
Mr. Watson: Over the last two financial years 21,880 recruits to the Regular Army enlisted nationally ranging from 380 in Northern Ireland to 3,650 in the North East. In my hon. Friend’s own region, the West Midlands, he should be proud that 2,150 joined. I will place full details in the Library.
18. Angela Watkinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent discussions he has had with defence manufacturers concerning armoured vehicles capable of withstanding improvised explosive devices. [87202]
Des Browne: I announced an urgent review of protected vehicles for operations on 26 June. Today in a written statement I confirmed that this review had highlighted the requirement for a protected vehicle with capabilities between those of the heavily armoured Warrior and the light and manoeuvrable SNATCH Land Rover. As the statement explained we shall buy around 100 additional Vector vehicles, up-armour a further 70 430 series armoured personnel carriers and introduce around 100 Cougar wheeled armoured vehicles.
21. Michael Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the availability of UK armoured vehicles in theatres of war. [87205]
Des Browne: As at 16 July, the availability of armoured vehicles deployed in Iraq and Afghanistan generally exceeded our targets.
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many times armoured vehicles broke down in Iraq between January and May 2006, broken down by vehicle type. [84803]
Mr.
Ingram: We keep records of vehicle availability, rather
than each breakdown, to allow for more efficient fleet management. This
also provides a clearer picture
for commanders on the ground of the assets at their disposal. Between
January and May 2006 vehicle availability for UK forces in Iraq
was:
| Vehicle | Availability (Percentage) |
Challenger 2 Main Battle Tank and Challenger 2 Armoured Recovery Vehicle | |
Warrior Armoured Fighting Vehicle and Armoured Fighting Vehicle 432 | |
19. David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the security situation in southern Iraq. [87203]
Des
Browne: The four provinces covered by Multi-National
Division (South East) remain relatively quiet compared to other areas
of Iraq, accounting for around 4 per cent. of all attacks. The security
situation in Basra, however, continues to cause concern. To address the
problems in the province, the Iraqi Government, has announced a
security plan for Basra.
I discussed the plan with Prime Minister Maliki this morning. The plan
is in its early stages but has already resulted in increased presence
of Iraqi security forces—with more to
come.
Mr. Walter: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) how much ordnance was used by British forces in Iraq in each of the last six months, broken down by type; [86101]
Des Browne [holding answer 20 July 2006]: Routine training accounted for the majority of most ammunition natures expended in Iraq by British forces. The following ammunition, broken down by type, was expended in each month, between January and June 2006:
| Ordnance type | Explanation of use | January | February | March | April | May |
Main armament on Warrior Armoured Fighting Vehicle (Rarden Cannon) | ||||||
Used as high explosive donor charges in controlled explosions | ||||||
| Ordnance type | Explanation of use | June | Training | Operational use | Total |
Main armament on Warrior Armoured Fighting Vehicle (Rarden Cannon) | |||||
Used as high explosive donor charges in controlled explosions | |||||
Anne Moffat: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the aims are of the provincial reconstruction team in Basra; and what he expects the team to achieve. [87188]
Des Browne: Provincial reconstruction teams aim to provide support to build the capacity of Iraqi institutions at a provincial level.
20. Mr. Devine: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress is being made in training Afghan security forces in peacekeeping. [87204]
Des Browne: Over 28,000 Afghan troops and over 30,000 police have been trained and equipped, although their training does not focus specifically on peacekeeping activities.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which countries have troops operating under the international security assistance force in Afghanistan; how many troops they had deployed on 10 July; and what restrictions are in place on the use of these forces. [85093]
Des Browne: As at 10 July, the following 36 countries contribute a total of around 10,000 troops to the international security assistance force (ISAF) in Afghanistan:
Albania
Austria
Azerbaijan
Belgium
Bulgaria
Canada
Celand
Croatia
Czech Republic
Denmark
Estonia
Finland
France
FYROM
Germany
Greece
Hungary
Ireland
Italy
Latvia
Lithuania
Luxembourg
New Zealand
Norway
Poland
Portugal
Romania
Slovakia
Slovenia
Spain
Sweden
Switzerland
The Netherlands
Turkey
UK
US
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the adequacy of (a) the number of Intelligence Corps personnel based in Helmand province and (b) the resources provided to the Intelligence Corps in Afghanistan. [85774]
Des Browne: The force package deployed to Afghanistan is that recommended by the Chiefs of Staff as the right force for the task.
Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what facilities are available for the detention of military detainees in Afghanistan; and if he will make a statement. [86700]
Des Browne [holding answer 20 July 2006]: UK armed forces have temporary holding facilities available in the south. NATO and UK policy is that detainees should either be transferred to the Afghan authorities within 96 hours, or released.
Mr. Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make a statement on the role of British forces in Afghanistan's counter-narcotics campaign. [87198]
Des Browne: Troops deployed as part of the NATO-led International security assistance force (ISAF)—including British forces deployed as part of the Helmand Task Force—are authorised to provide support to Afghan counter-narcotics forces, including training, and they will help the Afghans create a secure environment in which economic development and institutional reform—both essential to the elimination of the opium industry—can take place.
22. Mr. Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many complaints his Department has received about the administration of salaries of British armed forces personnel paid through the joint personnel administration system. [87206]
Mr. Watson: The initial roll out of joint personnel administration for pay and a wide range of other administrative services has been to the Royal Air Force only, and formal complaints about aspects of the system have been received in the form of 19 items of ministerial correspondence, and some 236 complaints via the internal complaints procedure of the Armed Forces Personnel Administration Agency. None have been received under the formal Royal Air Force redress of complaints procedure. However, the errors have reduced from 1,100 in May to 485 in June.
23. Jessica Morden: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps the Government are taking to promote peace and security in Africa. [87207]
Mr.
Ingram: The Government are supporting
the building of African conflict prevention and conflict management
capacity at continent, regional and national level, in line with our
wider G8 and international commitments. A key aspect of this work is UK
funding and technical support for the development of an African Peace
and Security Architecture under the auspices of the African Union,
enhancing the capacity of Africans to lead mediation and peacekeeping
within their own continent. At regional level, the Government are
supporting a range of political dialogues, security sector reform
programmes and civil society building initiatives designed to improve
stability and security. In addition, British forces are helping develop
African peace support operations capacity and are directly supporting a
number of peacekeeping missions in
Africa.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what advertising campaigns the Department ran between 2000 and June 2004; and what the (a) date and (b) cost was of each. [87067]
Mr. Watson: The only advertising campaigns undertaken by the Ministry of Defence are Armed Forces recruitment related. The information requested is not held centrally in the format requested. Details that are available are as follows:
| £ million | ||||
| Financial Year | Royal Navy | Royal Marines | Army | RAF |
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress his Department has made with the development of an uninhabited aerial vehicle technology demonstrator programme. [86663]
Mr. Ingram: The Ministry of Defence is currently working towards contract for an Uninhabited Air Vehicle Technology Demonstrator Programme (TDP) jointly funded with industry as announced in the Defence Industrial Strategy.
Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps he is taking to ensure that there are more sites where close air support operations and forward air control exercises can take place. [85214]
Mr. Watson: We keep the number of sites used for training exercises under constant review.
Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the availability of training sites for close air support operations and forward air control exercises. [86276]
Mr. Ingram: The Ministry of Defence Training areas are used for Close Air Support and Forward Air Control training wherever possible. Private land is also used for training as are sites overseas. We keep the number of sites used for training exercises under constant review.
Dr.
Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for
Defence how many (a) fighter, (b) training, (c)
tanker and
transport, (d) reconnaissance and (e) maritime patrol
aircraft were in service with the Royal Air Force in each year since
1997.
[84805]
Mr. Ingram: The following table gives aircraft numbers that were planned to be in service as at end March of each financial year (FY) shown. All figures have been rounded to the nearest 10.
| Financial Year | Fighter | Training | Tanker and Transport | Reconnaissance | Maritime Patrol Aircraft |
| Notes:
1. Only provisional figures are available for FY 2000-01. 2.
Training numbers include approximately 150 gliders each year.
3. Contracted fleets are not
included. | |||||
Dr. Julian Lewis: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what fleet tankers will be available to support each future aircraft carrier, if the in-service dates for the two new carriers are (a) confirmed as 2012 and 2015, (b) moved to 2015 and 2018 and (c) postponed to 2018 and 2021. [85379]
Mr. Ingram [holding answer 17 July 2006]: Existing Royal Fleet Auxiliary tankers and/or those planned within the Military Afloat Reach and Sustainability programme will support our Future Aircraft Carriers (CVF). As for all projects, the in-service dates for CVF will only be set following the main investment decision and once the dates have been approved by Ministers. As I indicated in my answer on 19 June 2006, Official Report, columns 1579-80W, the main investment decision has not yet been taken.
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many of the houses sold to Annington Homes have subsequently been (a) demolished and (b) sold to private buyers (i) in total and (ii) in Colchester. [86335]
Mr. Watson: Under the terms of the 1996 Sale Agreement with Annington Homes Ltd. (AHL), houses for which this Department has no further requirement are handed back to AHL. The Ministry of Defence maintains no records of how such properties are disposed of or developed. As a private company it is entirely a matter for AHL. It is believed that the majority are sold on the open market.
Mr. J Hopkins
1 James Street
London W1U 1DR
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much Annington Homes has paid to the Government for the houses it acquired from the Ministry of Defence (a) in total and (b) for the housing stock at Colchester. [86336]
Mr. Watson: The 1996 sale of 57,428 properties in England and Wales to Annington Homes Ltd raised £1.662 billion for the Exchequer.
Mr. Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the conventions are concerning armed services regular and reserve personnel having contact with hon. Members; and when they were last circulated. [86395]
Mr. Ingram [holding answer 20 July 2006]: Queen's Regulations provide guidance to service personnel regarding contacts with Members of Parliament for example on handling inquiries from Members, visit requests and political activity. Queen's Regulations are publicly available and I have placed copies in the Libraries of the House.
Mr. Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the Answer of 10 July 2006, Official Report, column 1436W, on injured British servicemen (treatment), how many armed forces personnel in (a) the Army, (b) the RAF and (c) the Royal Navy have been transferred to the NHS for continued medical care as a result of injuries sustained in (i) Iraq since 2003 and (ii) Afghanistan since 2002. [85833]
Des Browne: I refer the hon. Member to my answer of 13 July 2006, Official Report, column 1942W, which stated that details of armed forces personnel who have been medically discharged from the armed forces as a result of a condition that can be attributed specifically to service in Iraq or Afghanistan and whose continued medical care has therefore been transferred to the NHS, could be obtained only by a search of the individual medical records of all personnel discharged from the armed forces since the beginning of those Operations. This could be done only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how compensation for service personnel dismissed from the armed forces on the grounds of sexuality is assessed; and if he will make a statement. [87789]
Mr. Watson: The assessment of compensation in cases where service personnel were dismissed from the armed forces on the grounds of sexual orientation depends on the facts and circumstances of each individual case, taking into account detailed schedules of loss from the claimants and the jurisprudence of the ECHR.
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many members of the armed forces who were dismissed on the grounds of their sexuality are yet to receive compensation. [87956]
Mr. Watson: There are 62 claims against the Ministry of Defence from ex-Service personnel who allege that they were dismissed from the armed forces as a result of their sexual orientation that remain to be settled.
Mr. Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which NATO members require their troops to pay income tax when they are on active service. [87913]
Mr. Watson: The Ministry of Defence does not hold the information and it could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
Derek Conway: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many chaplains are serving with the (a) Royal Navy and Royal Marines, (b) the Army and (c) the Royal Air Force; how many in each category are (i) Christian, (ii) Jewish, (iii) Muslim, (iv) Hindu, (v) Sikh and (vi) of other religions; and what the total cost was to public funds of providing chaplaincy services in the last year for which figures are available. [87381]
Mr. Watson: There are a total of 376 chaplains serving with the armed forces. The breakdown per service is as follows:
| Number | |
| (1)
There are five chaplains who serve all three services from the
following religions, Muslim, Sikh, Hindu, Buddhist and Jewish. All are
civilian chaplains and do not
deploy. | |
The breakdown by religion is as follows:
| Number | |
| (1)
The Jewish chaplain is an honorary officiating
chaplain. | |
| £ | |
| (1)
The figures are based on capitation rates as at October 2005.
(2) This category includes Buddhist, Hindu (including
Pandits), Sikh, Muslim, and Jewish faiths. It is an estimated cost and
includes travel and subsistence. (3) Estimated costs
of officiating chaplains to the
forces. | |
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the answer of 17 July 2006, Official Report, column 209W, on Colombia, what his assessment is of the current level of risk to UK personnel involved in the bespoke counter narcotics training provided to Colombian law enforcement agencies. [88237]
Mr. Ingram: The risk to any personnel associated with counter narcotics activities in Columbia is potentially very high.
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on how many occasions he has accepted corporate hospitality in the last 12 months. [67527]
Des Browne: Paragraph 5.28 of the ministerial code sets out the rules on the registration of hospitality.
Sir Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when the Minister for Veterans will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire of 31 May 2006 (Ref: 03319/2006). [87936]
Mr. Watson: I wrote to the hon. Member on 21 July 2006.
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what budget has been made available to support his Department's Counter-Terrorism Science and Technology Centre at Porton Down for 2006-07. [86928]
Mr. Ingram: Some £5 million has been made available in 2006-07 to support the Department's Counter-Terrorism Science and Technology Centre. Planned consumption of resources in 2006-07 will take into consideration funding already available through MOD's research budget in support of related equipment projects to ensure value for money is achieved. Once fully established it is anticipated that the centre will attract further third party funding from other Government Departments and industry through joint projects.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether a review of the Defence planning assumptions will be conducted before the forthcoming comprehensive spending review. [87182]
Des Browne: Defence planning assumptions are reviewed as part of the Department’s routine strategic planning cycle. This work is about to begin and is planned to complete in spring 2008.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress has been made in the piloting of the operating framework for the Defence Procurement Agency; and if he will make a statement. [86659]
Mr. Ingram: As stated in the Ministry of Defence's response of 7 July 2006 to the House of Commons Defence Committee's report on the Defence Industrial Strategy, the DPA has completed development work regarding the project and programme management element of the operating framework, drawing on industry best practice. This work will form the basis of a wider Acquisition Operating Framework encompassing all of the Department's acquisition business.
Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the (a) function is and (b) annual cost in each of the last three years was of the departmental (i) Diversity and Work Balance Team, (ii) Ethnic Monitoring Team, (iii) Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Team, (iv) Disability Steering Committee Team and (v) Gender Panel; whether he has considered the merits of amalgamating these bodies into one unit; and what plans he has for their future. [86167]
Mr. Watson [holding answer 19 July 2006]: The function of the Diversity and Work Life Balance (DWLB) Team is to: ensure the Department complies with, and reports against, the extant and emerging UK and EU legal requirements; develop and support the implementation of associated policy and guidance for the Department’s 100,000 civilians; support the achievement of a work force truly representative of the community it serves; and assist the Department in being an employer of choice through contributing to the development of a contemporary employment framework. The salary and associated costs of the DWLB Team over the past three years is:
| £ | |
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many carbon dioxide emission permits have been allocated to military establishments; and what the actual emissions were for each military establishment included in the EU Emissions Trading scheme in its first year of operation. [86470]
Mr. Watson: I can confirm 267,428 carbon dioxide emission permits were allocated to military establishments. The following table details how many carbon dioxide emission permits were allocated to each Ministry of Defence establishment, and the level of emissions during the first year (2005-06) of operation of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme.
| Ministry of Defence Site | Annual emission permits | Actual emissions 2005 (tonnes Carbon Dioxide) |
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many staff were recruited by the (a) RAF and (b) Royal Navy in each year since 1997, broken down by personnel type. [85755]
Mr. Watson: Intake from civil life to the United Kingdom Regular Royal Navy and Royal Air Force broken down by Officers and other ranks and branch or trade group is shown in the following tables:
| Naval Service Officer intake from civil life by branch | |||||||||
| 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-2000 | 2000-01 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
| (1
)Queen Alexandra’s Royal Naval Nursing
Service. | |||||||||
| Naval Service ratings intake from civil life by branch | |||||||||
| 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-2000 | 2000-01 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
| RAF Officer intake from civil life by branch | |||||||||
| 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-2000 | 2000-01 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
| (1
)Princess Mary’s Royal Air Force Nursing
Service. | |||||||||
| RAF other ranks intake from civil life by trade group | |||||||||
| 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-2000 | 2000-01 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
| (1)
Zero or rounded to zero. (2
)Provisional. | |||||||||
Figures include re-enlistments and rejoined reservists.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he will answer Questions (a) 71152 and (b) 71153, on helicopter fuel tank protection, tabled by the hon. Member for Portsmouth, South for answer on 12 May 2006. [85277]
Mr. Ingram: I replied to the hon. Member on 13 July 2006, Official Report, column 1940W.
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects the Armed Forces Pay Review Body report on service medical and dental officers to be published. [87170]
Des Browne: I refer the hon. Member to the written ministerial I made today.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his written statement of 18 July 2006, on the Pattern of Military Low Flying Across the UK 2005-06, when he expects the 2005-06 report to be (a) completed and (b) published. [87728]
Mr. Watson: The Pattern of Military Low Flying Across the United Kingdom 2005-06 is expected to be completed and printed in early August, and will be placed in the Library of the House during the recess. I will write to the hon. Member when that has been done.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence in which vehicles British service personnel have been (a) killed and (b) injured as a result of hostile action in (i) Iraq and (ii) Afghanistan in each of the last three years; and if he will make a statement. [81591]
Des Browne: 25 British servicemen have been killed as a result of hostile action while in military vehicles since the start of the conflict in Iraq. Twenty of these were travelling in armoured Land Rovers, two in unarmoured Land Rovers, two in Warrior armoured fighting vehicles and one was travelling in an unarmoured military ambulance. Ten servicemen were also killed by hostile action while flying in a military C-130 aircraft.
Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the relative protection afforded from improvised explosive devices by the Tempest Truck, Mine Protected Vehicle and the Force Protection Inc. Cougar joint explosive ordnance disposal rapid response vehicles employed by the US Marine Corps in Iraq. [82530]
Mr. Ingram: The in service Mine Protected Vehicle, which was originally known as Tempest although that name is no longer used, is based on an early version of the Force Protection Inc. Cougar vehicle. There are many variants of the Cougar and different nations modify them to meet their own specifications and roles. We do not comment on the relative protection as to do so would prejudice safety of allies.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many times his ministerial office has been decorated in each of the last five years. [87652]
Mr.
Watson: In 2001 the Ministry of Defence
head office moved from the main building to temporary offices allowing
for the main building PFI redevelopment project to provide a new modern
working environment appropriate to the future business need of the
Department. Some redecoration of the temporary accommodation was
undertaken to prepare it, including for Minister's
offices. In 2004 the Ministry of Defence head office returned to the
main building. There has been no redecoration of ministerial offices
since this
date.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects plans for ballistic missile defence for NATO allies to be approved. [86670]
Des Browne: The NATO Missile Defence Feasibility Study was noted by the North Atlantic Council in June 2006. NATO will continue to examine the options for, and implications of, the possible acquisition of territorial Ballistic Missile Defence, but it has made no plans for such acquisition nor set a timetable for a decision.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what feasibility studies his Department has carried out on possible sites for ground based interceptors in relation to possible UK involvement in a missile defence shield. [86671]
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what rules apply to the use of mobile telephones and camera telephones on RAF stations; and what the reasons are for such rules. [85308]
Mr. Watson: The use of mobile and camera telephones is governed by defence-wide security policy. A balance has to be drawn between the need to protect the Ministry of Defence information and assets and allowing the greatest possible freedom for the individual. Each RAF Station will have its own specific rules that apply to the use of mobile telephones and camera telephones. These requirements are published to staff and briefed to visitors on arrival.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the written statement of 17 July 2006, Official Report, column 3WS, on modernising armed forces and veterans personnel administration, what budget has been set aside to carry out the proposed changes. [87093]
Mr. Watson: The bringing together of the Armed Forces Personnel Administration Agency and the Veterans Agency will incur modest costs, primarily in senior management time and in any re-badging of the new agency. These costs will be met by existing budgets within the individual agencies and are not significant enough to require a separate budget to be set aside. Any subsequent proposals for investment to improve service quality would be assessed case by case.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to the written statement of 17 July 2006, Official Report, column 3WS, on modernising armed forces and veterans personnel administration, if he will place in the Library a copy of the (a) study and (b) consultation document. [87094]
Mr. Watson: Yes. I will place the information requested in the Library of the House.
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his Answer of 12 July 2006, Official Report, column 1884W, on welfare services, whether Nell McAndrew will be remunerated for her work on the confidential support line campaign with the Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association. [87172]
Mr. Watson: That is a matter between the Association and Nell McAndrew. We remain greatly appreciative of the support she gives to our armed forces.
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will publish a disaggregation by function and location of the £9,753,827,000 undiscounted costs of nuclear liabilities, set out at page 220 of his Department's Annual Report and Accounts for 2005-06, HC1394, for which his Department is responsible; and if he will publish the advice provided to his Department by NIREX to which the Report makes reference. [86925]
Des Browne: A disaggregation by function and location of the £9,753,827,000 undiscounted costs of nuclear liabilities, stated in the Department's Annual Report and Accounts for 2005-06, is as follows:
£3,394,744,000—Costs associated with decommissioning, care and maintenance of redundant facilities (the conditioning, retrieval and storage of contaminated materials); research and development; and the procurement of capital facilities to handle the various waste streams.
Location: AWE Sites, Berkshire.
£2,132,782,000—Decontamination and decommissioning of Naval Test Reactor and waste disposal.
Location: Dounreay.
£1,052,580,000—Costs associated with the research, development and construction of the NIREX Deep Waste Repository.
Location: Not yet known.
£934,659,000—Storage of nuclear materials.
Locations: Springfields, Capenhurst and Sellafield.
£909,892,000—Nuclear Propulsion decontamination and decommissioning liabilities at various sites which conduct nuclear submarine decommissioning work on behalf of MOD.
Locations: Sellafield, Derby and mobile support equipment.
£504,144,000—Berthing and decommissioning of out of service submarines.
Locations: Rosyth and Devonport.
£332,835,000—Decommissioning of current in-service submarines.
Location: Rosyth and Devonport.
£177,259,000—Sundry provisions, the bulk of which is in respect of costs of storage of low level waste.
Location: Sellafield.
£146,401,000—Dismantlement of Warheads.
Location: AWE Sites, Berkshire.
£119,168,000—Decommissioning of nuclear submarine refit and refuelling facilities.
Location: Devonport Dockyard.
£32,299,000—Nuclear Decommissioning and Decontamination of Rosyth Dockyard on completion of the final Nuclear Submarine Project contract.
Location: Rosyth.
£10,627,000—Decommissioning and disposal of the Neptune Test Reactor.
Location: Derby.
£4,030,000—Disposal of Support Equipment which contains depleted uranium.
Location: Rosyth and Devonport.
£2,207,000—Decommissioning of a facility that processes radiological submarine effluent at HM Naval Base Clyde which is being superseded by a new Radiological Processing Facility.
Location: HM Naval Base Clyde.
£200,000—Decontamination related to low-level and small quantities of nuclear materials used in educational laboratories at the Defence Academy.
Location: Shrivenham.
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to paragraph 64 of his Department's Annual Report and Accounts for 2005-06, HC 1394, which international legal obligations would have to be met by the United Kingdom if it was decided to use its nuclear weapons. [86930]
Des Browne: The UK would consider using nuclear weapons only in extreme circumstances of self-defence and in accordance with our international legal obligations, including those relating to the conduct of armed conflict.
Mr. Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate he has made of the cost of awarding war pensions to all nuclear test veterans suffering from radiation linked disease. [86069]
Mr.
Watson: All nuclear test veterans are eligible to claim,
under the terms of the war pension scheme, for any disablement causally
linked to service rather than for specific conditions or diseases. A
war pension is also paid whenever the claimant can raise reasonable
doubt, by providing reliable evidence, that the claimed disablement is
causally linked to service. The War Pensions Scheme considers
disablement from radiation linked disease, to include such conditions
as certain
thyroid and parathyroid diseases, cataracts and malignant disease and
cancer. Cancers due to ionising radiation are clinically
indistinguishable from those due to any other cause which are common in
a population increasing with age. Based on the findings of National
Radiological Protection Board (NRPB) reports it is war pensions policy
that entitlement is given to any type of leukaemia, other than chronic
lymphatic with onset, within 25 years of participation at a nuclear
test.
Mr. Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will publish the inventory of nuclear waste created from all the nuclear weapons programmes in the UK, including the submarine fleet; when the inventory was last updated; and what his plans are for updating the inventory. [87384]
Mr. Ingram: The United Kingdom Radioactive Waste Inventory, published periodically by NIREX and DEFRA, contains details of nuclear waste arising from the Defence programme. An electronic copy of the most recent inventory was published on 19 January 2006 and is available in the Library of the House.
Mr. Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether he has a list of radioactive materials that are not included in the inventory of nuclear waste from nuclear weapons programmes. [87385]
Mr. Ingram: All radioactive materials employed in, or arising from, the nuclear weapons programme are either recorded in the United Kingdom Radioactive Waste Inventory or accounted for separately in accordance with statutory requirements.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress his Department has made on (a) the launch of the Pathfinder programme teams and (b) scoping of Pathfinder programmes on through-life capability management. [86658]
Mr. Ingram: The two Pathfinder programmes—Sustained Surface Combatant Capability and Sustained Armoured Vehicle Capability—bring together representatives from the Ministry of Defence and industry to pilot new approaches to acquisition on a through-life capability basis. Team members were identified in consultation with industry. Both teams are established and are making good progress. A Pathfinder ‘Industry Day’ is being held on 28 July.
Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many privately owned pieces of land are used by the RAF around Ledbury, Herefordshire. [85229]
Mr. Watson: No privately-owned pieces of land have been used by the RAF around Ledbury, Herefordshire.
Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what private land was used for close air support operations and forward air control exercises in the last three years; in what counties the land used was located; and whether rent was paid for the use of the land. [85234]
Mr. Watson: I will write to the hon. Member and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House.
Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much was paid to land owners in Herefordshire for the use of their property for RAF exercises in each of the last three years. [85238]
Mr. Watson: No money has been paid to land owners in Herefordshire for use of their property in RAF exercises in the last three years.
Mr. Brazier: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library the studies of the demobilisation surveys for reserve forces completing operational engagements for the last five years. [85487]
Mr. Watson: We are considering whether the documents can be released in full or in part. This will require scrutiny of a considerable amount of information contained within five main reports and three follow-up reports. Once this process is complete, I will write to the hon. Member and, if appropriate, place copies of the report in the Library of the House.
Mr. Brazier: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will place in the Library the studies of terminal surveys for members of reserve forces leaving the reserve forces for the last five years. [85488]
Mr. Watson: The armed forces do not currently carry out terminal surveys for members of the reserve forces. But we do conduct a larger number of focused surveys on reserves; for example a continuous attitude survey on the TA and a copy of this survey of Annex is in the Library of the House.
Mr. Brazier: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the manning totals were (a) in 2005-06 and (b) in the most recent period for which figures are available of (i) men and (ii) women for (A) officers and (B) other ranks in each of the reserve forces, breaking down (1) the Territorial Army by area and corps and (2) (x) the Royal Navy Reserve and (y) the Royal Auxiliary Air Force by functional category. [85503]
Mr. Watson [holding answer14 July 2006]: Available information on the number of male and female officers and other ranks in the Territorial Army and the Royal Auxiliary Air Force is given in the following tables:
| Territorial Army personnel( 1) as at 1 April 2005 | ||||||
| Number | ||||||
| Male | Officers female | Total | Male | Other ranks female | Total | |
| (1)
Figures include Mobilised TA personnel and University Officer Training
Corps but exclude Non Regular Permanent Staff and Full Time Reserve
Service personnel. Source: DASA
(Army) | ||||||
| Territorial Army personnel( 1) as at 1 April 2006 | ||||||
| Number | ||||||
| Male | Officers female | Total | Male | Other ranks female | Total | |
| (1)
Figures include Mobilised TA personnel and University Officer Training
Corps but exclude Non Regular Permanent Staff and Full Time Reserve
Service personnel. Source: DASA
(Army) | ||||||
| Royal Auxiliary Air Force strength by gender | ||
| Number | ||
| 1 April 2005 | 1 April 2006 | |
| Source:
DASA (Air) | ||
| Royal Auxiliary Air Force officers | ||
| Number | ||
| 1 April 2005 | 1 April 2006 | |
| Source:
DASA
(Air) | ||
| Royal Auxiliary Air Force other ranks | ||
| Number | ||
| 1 April 2005 | 1 April 2006 | |
Aerospace Manager Operator/Senior Non Commissioned Officer Fighter Controller | ||
| ‘—’
denotes zero or rounded to zero. Note: All
figures have been rounded to the nearest 10. Due to the rounding
methods used, figures may not always equal the sum of the parts. When
rounding to the nearest 10, numbers ending in 5 have been rounded to
the nearest multiple of 20 to prevent systematic bias.
Source: DASA
(Air) | ||
| Royal Navy Reserves as at 31 March 2005 | ||||||
| Number | ||||||
| Male | Officers female | Total | Male | Other ranks female | Total | |
| Source:
RNR
database | ||||||
| Royal Navy Reserves as at 31 March 2006 | ||||||
| Number | ||||||
| Male | Officers female | Total | Male | Other ranks female | Total | |
| Source:
RNR
database | ||||||
Mr. Walker: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will take steps to compensate and support small and medium-sized enterprises with key members of staff serving as called up reservists fulfilling long-term postings; and if he will make a statement. [87914]
Mr. Watson: The Reserve Forces Act 1996 allows payments to Reservists and/or their employers when the former are called out into permanent service. The detailed regulations are set out in a Statutory Instrument (SI 859), which came into force in April 2005.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many ships from the Royal Fleet Auxiliary have been cannibalised in the past 12 months. [86998]
Mr. Ingram: Over the past 12 months, eight ships of the RFA have had items of equipment removed for installation in other ships. This process is normally used to meet high priority operational commitments and where the items in demand are not readily available from normal sources. Equipment is then refitted to donor ships when it becomes available.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many ships from the Royal Fleet Auxiliary can be deployed. [86999]
Mr. Ingram: All RFA ships currently in service are deployable within the timescales set down in the current Fleet Readiness Profile.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the average number of separated service days was in the last recorded 30 day month rolling period for the Regular army (a) infantry, (b) Royal Artillery, (c) Royal Engineers, (d) Royal Corps of Signals, (e) Royal Armoured Corps, (f) Household Cavalry, (g) Royal Electrical Mechanical Engineers and (h) Army Medical Services. [87022]
Mr. Watson: The information is listed in the following table.
| Average number of days spent on separated service by Arm/Service over 30 months using figures recorded at 1 January 2006 | |
| Arm/Service | Number |
| Notes:
1. Army Medical Services include the Royal Army Medical Corps, Royal
Army Dental Corps, Royal Army Veterinary Corps and the Queen
Alexandra's Royal Army Nursing Corps. 2. Figures are based on
personnel on separated service, at any time from 1 July 2003 to 31
December 2005 inclusive. 3. Figures are for United Kingdom
trained army personnel only and therefore exclude full-time reserve
service personnel, Gurkhas, The Home Service Battalions of the Royal
Irish Regiment and Mobilised
Reservists. | |
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the (a) average, (b) highest and (c) lowest number of days of separated service over the last three-year period for which figures are available was for each of the Royal Navy pinch point trades identified in his Department's annual report and accounts 2005-06. [87034]
Mr. Ingram: For the pinch points in question, separated service has only been centrally recorded since April 2004. Data is available up to the end of March 2006. The average, highest and lowest number of days of separated service recorded over this period are:
| Pinch point | Recorded separated service | ||
| Average | Highest | Lowest | |
Air Engineering Technicians (including Mechanics and Artificers) | |||
| Notes:
1. Figures are given for those serving on the trained strength at 1
April 2006. 2. For Nuclear Watchkeepers, the population has
been taken as Marine Engineering Artificers at Petty Officer, Chief
Petty Officer and Warrant Officer 2. 3. The Navy is currently
restructuring the Air Engineering branch from the current
Artificer/Mechanic career streams to a single Technician stream. For
this reason, combined figures are given for these career
streams. 4. Royal Marines figures exclude the band
service. 5. The Navy harmony guideline for separated service
is a maximum of 660 days over a 36 month period. 6. Although
days spent on hospitalisation, annual leave and adventurous training
are recorded by the separated service system, they do not count towards
the 660 days target and are not included in the above
figures. | |||
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many spare parts were (a) available and (b) required for Army Air Corps (i) Apache, (ii) Lynx and (iii) Gazelle helicopter fleets in the past 12 months. [87000]
Mr. Ingram: This information is not held centrally and could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many spare parts were (a) available and (b) required for the Royal Navy (i) destroyer, (ii) frigate, (iii) mine counter vessel, (iv) patrol vessel, (v) Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessel and (vi) submarine fleet in the past 12 months. [87001]
Mr. Ingram: Naval spares support is managed on a whole Fleet basis, not by class of vessel. Customers include ships, shore establishments and other services. Stock levels are set to optimise support to all customers and performance is recorded on a monthly basis. As a result, the information is not available in the format requested. Each ship has an on board allowance of spares designed to support self-sustainability for 90 days.
Mr. Grieve: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what role is played by special advisers in answering parliamentary questions asked of his Department. [80648]
Mr. Watson: Special advisers conduct themselves in accordance with the requirements of the code of conduct for special advisers.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence on what occasions a statutory instrument sponsored by his Department has been reported by the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments as defective since October 2005. [85184]
Mr. Watson: The Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments has reported two statutory instruments sponsored by the Ministry of Defence for defective drafting since October 2005.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress he has made on the establishment of a unified submarine programme management organisation within the Department; and if he will make a statement. [86665]
Des Browne: Since April 2006 submarine programme management within MOD has been unified under Director General Nuclear, who is responsible for managing delivery of the submarine programme from concept to disposal. Recent efforts have concentrated on the development of processes to support governance of the new organisation.
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the sustainability principles set out at paragraph 77 of his Department's Annual Report and Accounts for 2005-06, HC 1394, are applied by British forces deployed in (a) Afghanistan and (b) Iraq. [86931]
Des Browne: British armed forces deployed overseas apply United Kingdom policies and standards on sustainable development where reasonably practicable. In addition, we comply with relevant host nations' standards.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence when he expects to be in a position to announce the final payment to Swan Hunter following the termination of the contract for the Landings Ship Dock (Auxiliary) with that shipyard. [87049]
Mr. Ingram: Final payment to Swan Hunter will be made once all of the obligations of the settlement agreed with the company have been met.
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many Tavern armoured vehicles are owned by the Ministry of Defence; and how many such vehicles are located in (a) Northern Ireland, (b) Iraq, (c) Afghanistan and (d) the UK. [87041]
Mr. Ingram: The Ministry of Defence currently has 96 Tavern vehicles located in Northern Ireland and eight in UK. None is deployed in Iraq or Afghanistan.
Mr. Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence pursuant to his answer of 10 July 2006, Official Report, column 1442W, on Territorial Army (Records), (1) what the reason is for the time taken to reply to the question; [85119]
Mr. Watson: The Reserve Training and Mobilisation Centre has no authority over the posting process and therefore will not routinely know if an individual is subsequently posted to a different unit. This is the responsibility of the Integrated Mobilisation Cell who decide where members of the Territorial Army are to be posted, and the Army Personnel Centre who issue the posting order and update the individual's Record of Service.
Dr. Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what the average tour interval of the (a) Corps of Royal Engineers, (b) Royal Corps of Signals, (c) Royal Logistic Corps and (d) Royal Electric and Mechanical Engineers has been over the last five years; [57473]
Mr. Ingram: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 7 March 2006, Official Report, column 1283W, for the information relating to the Royal Engineers, Royal Corps of Signals and Royal Logistic Corps.
| Regiment | 1 February to 31 December 2001 | 1 January to 31 December 2002 | 1 January to 31 December 2003 |
| Regiment | 1 January to 31 December 2004 | 1 January to 31 December 2005 | 31 December 2005 to 1 July 2006 |
| (1)
Indicates the same
tour | |||
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what the (a) actual gains to trained strength and (b) total target gains to trained strength are for each of the Royal Navy pinch point trades identified in his Department’s annual report and accounts 2005-06; [87037]
Mr. Watson: It will take a few weeks to validate the requested information to ensure accuracy and consistency. I will write to the hon. Member and place a copy of my letter in the Library of the House when this is completed.
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what expenditure there has been on preparatory (a) studies and (b) infrastructure development on a replacement for the Trident nuclear system. [86947]
Des Browne: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave on 18 July 2006, Official Report, column 350W, to the hon. Member for Yeovil (Mr. Laws).
Mr. Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the budget is for the UK Missile Defence Centre for each of the next three years. [86668]
Des Browne: The UK Missile Defence Centre was founded on 18 July 2003 with a six-year mandate. It has just begun its fourth year with an approved budget of £5.7 million, the provisional budget allocation for each of the final two years is £5 million.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence under what circumstances weapons are provided to (a) UK and (b) other civilians in (i) Iraq and (ii) Afghanistan; and if he will make a statement. [85301]
Des Browne: The Ministry of Defence does not provide weapons to its civilian employees deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan.
David Simpson: To ask the Solicitor-General pursuant to the answer of 17 July 2006, Official Report, column 12W, on the Environment and Heritage Service, what steps he takes to ensure cost-effectiveness of court cases brought on behalf of the Environment and Heritage Service. [87339]
The Solicitor-General: The Public Prosecution Service conducts all cases it prosecutes, including those on behalf of the Environment and Heritage Service, in accordance with the Test for Prosecution. That test is whether there is sufficient available evidence to afford a reasonable prospect of conviction and, if so, whether it is in the public interest to prosecute. If the evidential aspect of the test is met, there is a strong presumption that prosecution is in the public interest; the more serious the offence, or its consequences, the stronger the presumption. The cost of bringing a prosecution does not weigh in that consideration. The PPS may take into account, in assessing the public interest, of whether the offence is of such a nature that it is likely that the court will impose only a very small or nominal penalty.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Solicitor-General if he will list the offences which may be prosecuted only with the consent of (a) the Solicitor-General and (b) the Director of Public Prosecutions. [87111]
The Solicitor-General: By statute, certain offences require the consent of the Attorney-General or the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) in order for there to be a prosecution. The Law Officers Act 1997, section 1, provides that any function of the Attorney-General (which includes therefore the granting of consent to prosecute) may be exercised by the Solicitor-General.
David Simpson: To ask the Solicitor-General on how many occasions he has visited each region in an official capacity in the last 12 months. [84008]
The Solicitor-General: Since June 2006 I have made six visits to the regions. These consisted of three visits to the South East, two visits to the North West and one visit to Yorkshire and the Humber. In addition I have made two visits to Northern Ireland.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Solicitor-General how many parliamentary questions tabled to his Department were awaiting a reply on 10 July 2006; which of those had been waiting longer than (a) two and (b) three weeks for a reply; and what the reason for the delay was in each case. [85194]
The Solicitor-General: At the time that this question was asked there were 18 parliamentary questions awaiting an answer. There were two that had been waiting for two weeks and four that had been waiting for three weeks for a substantive answer. All six of these questions have now been answered.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Solicitor-General how many public appointments are within the patronage of the Law Officers; what (a) salary and (b) other emoluments are attached to each; and what the comparable figures were in (i) 1976, (ii) 1986 and (iii) 1996. [83171]
Mr. Amess: To ask the Solicitor-General on what occasions a statutory instrument sponsored by his Department has been reported by the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments as defective since October 2005. [85176]
Lorely Burt: To ask the Minister for Women and Equality what plans the Government have to tackle homophobic bullying in (a) schools and (b) the community. [88193]
Meg Munn: The Government plan to introduce regulations later this year under part 3 of the Equality Act 2006 to prohibit sexual orientation discrimination in the provision of goods, facilities, services, education and public functions. These measures will empower individuals to challenge unacceptable prejudice in their every day lives and will reinforce and support the work already being done in many communities by police forces and other bodies to confront and tackle homophobic bullying.
Mr.
Dismore: To ask the hon.
Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission if
the Commission will review the rules governing the use by hon. Members
of House (a) accommodation, (b) telephones and (c)
stationery with a view to tightening
the restrictions on their use for party political purposes.
[86108]
Nick Harvey: Facilities provided for individualhon. Members under the House of Commons: administration estimate, for which the Commission is responsible, are intended for use in connection with their parliamentary and public business. The rules governing their use are kept under review by the House authorities in the light of circumstances, and also in the event of specific complaints alleging abuse. Failure to observe the rules on the use of parliamentary facilities may be a breach of the code of conduct.
Mr. Dismore: To ask the hon. Member for North Devon, representing the House of Commons Commission pursuant to the answer of 17 July 2006, Official Report, columns 8-9W, on senior staff appointments, if the Commission will take steps to ensure that in futurethe appointments to the three senior posts are made by the House. [87139]
Nick Harvey: These appointments are made by the Crown. Changes would be necessary in legislation for the appointments to be made by the House. The Commission has no plans to seek such changes.
Mr. Rogerson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what plans she has to measure the impact of arm's length management organisations on tenant satisfaction. [83373]
Yvette
Cooper: Tenant satisfaction is one of the best value
performance indicators used to measure
performance by local authorities. To date there is only data available
to cover the first two years of operation for the first eight ALMOs. As
soon as sufficient data is available we will be able to assess the
impact of ALMOs on tenant satisfaction more
generally.
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much in (a) rate support grants, (b) business rates and (c) special grants the Government paid to City of York council in each year since its creation as a unitary authority (i) in cash terms and (ii) at current prices; how much will be paid in each category in 2006-07; and what the purpose was of each special grant of £50,000 or more. [86526]
Mr. Woolas: The following table shows the amount of revenue support grant, redistributed business rates and specific and special grants allocated to the City of York council in the period 1996-97 to 2006-07.
| £ million | ||||||
| Revenue Support Grant | Redistributed Business Rates | Specific and Special Grants within Aggregate External Finance (AEF) | ||||
| Cash terms | Current prices | Cash terms | Current prices | Cash terms | Current prices | |
The current prices have been calculated using the GDP deflator as the measure of inflation.
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government when the chair of the Commission for Equality and Human Rights will be appointed; and if she will make a statement. [86742]
Meg Munn [holding answer 20 July 2006]: I anticipate that the chair of the Commission for Equality and Human Rights will be appointed during the summer period.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer of 10 July 2006, Official Report, columns 1538-42W, on consultancies, if she will place in the Library a copy of document 5, the MORI Survey of Government Office for the South East partners. [86910]
Angela E. Smith: The requested document will be made available in the Libraries of the House.
Mr. Keetch: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) what arethe principal purposes of the Contaminated Land: Application in Real Environments scheme; how much public funding the scheme will receive in 2006-07; when its current grant expires; and by what process future public funding levels will be determined; [86426]
Mr. Bradshaw: I have been asked to reply.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what proportion of the Greater London population paid council tax in the last year for which figures are available; and what percentage qualified for discounts. [87115]
Mr. Woolas: The number of chargeable dwellings liable for council tax in Greater London as at November 2005 was 3,108,000 of which 1,281,000 dwellings (41.2 per cent.) were entitled to a discount.
Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much council tax was raised in the last year for which figures are available. [87156]
Mr. Woolas: The council tax received by local authorities in England in 2005-06 was £18,419 million. This figure excludes amounts funded by council tax benefit and includes both arrears received for previous years and prepayment of council tax for subsequent years.
Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the cost was of administering the council tax system in the latest year for which figures are available. [87158]
Mr. Woolas: Net current expenditure on administering the council tax system for 2004-05 by local authorities in England is tabled as follows.
| £ million | |
Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will place in the Library copies of the Valuation Office Agency’s council tax people’s panel reports and summaries from the last 24 months. [87348]
Mr. Woolas: The results from the Valuation Office Agency’s council tax people’s panels, for the now postponed council tax revaluation in England, are for input to the formulation and development of Government policy and it is not therefore appropriate to place these in the public domain.
Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what plans the Government have for (a) a single property account and (b) a single citizen account as part of its e-government and Government Connects programme. [88058]
Mr. Woolas: The Government recognise the strategic importance of (a) a single property account and issued an outline prospectus entitled “Towards the National Spatial Addressing Infrastructure” for public consultation in May last year, containing technical details and governance structures. Discussions with stakeholders regarding this initiative are currently ongoing.
Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what funding was provided to local authorities for Implementing Electronic Government in each year since its introduction; and how much has been allocated for (a) 2006-07 and (b) 2007-08. [88070]
Mr. Woolas: Local authorities in England were allocated the following capital grant for Implementing Electronic Government:
| Capital grant (£) | |
Mr. Wills: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many vacant homes there are in (a) England and (b) Swindon. [86631]
Yvette Cooper: The information is as follows:
At October 2005 there were an estimated 723,194 vacant homes in England.
At October 2005 Swindon district council reported a total of 2,374 vacant homes.
Source:
Council Tax Base 1 (CTB1) returns.
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps her Department has taken to support local authorities becoming designated as fair trade councils. [87523]
Mr. Woolas: Local authorities are responsible for taking their own procurement decisions subject to the requirements of Best Value Legislation and to the EU/UK regulatory framework. Fair trade options have to be considered by local authorities within this framework.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many malicious false fire alarms were attended by the fire and rescue service in (a) each London borough and (b) constituency since 2004-05. [86813]
Angela E. Smith: Information provided by the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority (LFEPA) is shown in the following tables:
| Malicious false fire alarms attended by London borough | ||
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
| Malicious false fire alarms attended by constituency | ||
| 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
| Note: Data supplied by LFEPA. | ||
Judy Mallaber: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what arrangements are in place to (a) monitor the progress of the roll out of regional fire control centres and (b) ensure all functions and duties currently undertaken by fire control centres are covered in the new structure. [86044]
Angela E. Smith: The FiReControl project is managed in line with the principles of PRINCE2 methodology and Office of Government Commerce (OGC) best practice.
www.firecontrol.communities.gov.uk
Judy Mallaber: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what response she has made to the Fire Brigade Union document Regional Control: national resilience. [86045]
Angela E. Smith: The Fire Brigade Union sent a copy of their document “Regional Control: national resilience” to the Deputy Prime Minister and requested a meeting. The Deputy Prime Minister met with the Fire Brigade Union Secretary on the 7 February 2006 to discuss their proposals, amongst other things.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the location is of each fire local control room in England, broken down by region; and how many people are employed at each. [86782]
Angela E. Smith: The information requested is tabulated as follows:
| Staff in post on 31 March 2005 (all persons having a fire control role) | |
| Region | Staff (full-time equivalents) |
| (1)
2004
figure. Source: Fire and Rescue Service returns to DCLG. | |
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many incidents (a) Merseyside Fire Service and (b) fire services in England experienced where booby-traps had been left to injure firemen in the course of carrying out their duties in each year for which figures are available. [88206]
Angela E. Smith: The information requested is not held centrally.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many outbreaks of fire were recorded in each London borough in each of the last five years. [86797]
Angela E. Smith: Information provided by the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority (LFEPA) is tabulated as follows.
| Fires attended in each London borough, 2001-02 to 2005-06 | |||||
| 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
| Note: Data supplied by LFEPA, and include both primary and secondary fires. | |||||
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many (a) primary and (b) secondary fires there were in England in each year since 1981; and how many dwelling fires there were in England in each year since 1976. [86803]
Angela E. Smith: The information requested is tabulated as follows:
| Primary, dwelling and secondary fires attended by fire and rescue services, England: 1976 to 2004 | |||
| Thousand | |||
| Total primary fires | Dwelling fires | Secondary fires | |
| Notes: 1. Data collection methods have varied over time, so categories may not be consistent throughout the period. 2. Data includes estimates for incidents not recorded in November 2002 and January and February 2003 during industrial action. Source: Fire and Rescue Service returns to DCLG. | |||
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many deliberate (a) vehicle fires and (b) fires there were in each London borough in each of the last five years. [86836]
Angela E. Smith: Information provided by the London Fire and Emergency Planning Authority (LFEPA) is showing in the following tables:
| Deliberate vehicle fires attended by London Fire Brigade by borough | |||||
| 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
| Deliberate fires attended by London Fire Brigade by borough | |||||
| 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
| Note: Data supplied by LFEPA, and includes both primary and secondary fires. | |||||
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many large outbreaks of fire there were in each fire authority in each of the last 10 years. [87181]
Angela E. Smith: The information requested is in the following table.
| Fires( 1, 2) attended by five or more pumping appliances by FRS area, England: 1995-2004 | ||||||||||
| Number | ||||||||||
| FRS area | 1995 | 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 |
| (1)
Including additional late call and heat and smoke damage incidents (not
recorded prior to
1994). (2) Excluding incidents not recorded during periods of industrial action in 2002 and 2003. Note: Figures are based on sampled data grossed to fire and rescue service totals. Source: Fire and rescue service returns to DCLG | ||||||||||
Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the level of provision was during the recent Hertfordshire fire strike for interim fire and rescue cover (a) to tackle fire and (b) to assist with road accidents. [88074]
Angela E. Smith: Hertfordshire experienced three individual periods of strike action, on 20, 26 and31 May 2006, each lasting for eight hours. The level of fire and rescue cover varied from 11 up to 16 pumping appliances, plus a specialist rescue vehicle. All pumping appliances had capability for both firefighting and road traffic accidents. The specialist rescue vehicle was for road traffic accidents. It was in service for the first two periods of strike action, but not for the last period, when the skills were available in other crews.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what plans the Government have to ensure inter-operability and improve communications between the fire service and the other emergency services. [86977]
Angela E. Smith: The Firelink project, providing updated wide area radio communications to the fire and rescue service, will roll out from this autumn through until 2009. Firelink will provide inter-operability with police and ambulance services at strategic and tactical command levels.
Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many golf courses were registered on the Ratings List for business rates in England in the most recent year for which figures are available. [88077]
Mr. Woolas: The number of properties described as a golf course in the 2005 Rating List for England, at31 January 2006, is 1,786.
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how she defines inappropriate development with regard to Green Belt policy. [87744]
Yvette Cooper: In deciding whether a development is inappropriate in the Green Belt the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government is guided by Planning Policy Guidance note 2 (PPG2), Green Belts.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what powers are available to local authorities to deal with nuisance caused by horses (a) roaming wild in urban areas and (b) tethered on (i) public and (ii) private open space; and if she will make a statement. [85305]
Barry Gardiner: I have been asked to reply.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the average price of a home was in each London borough in each of the last five years. [82898]
Yvette Cooper: Average house prices for London boroughs and local authority districts from 1996 based on data from the Land Registry are published in Table 585 on the Department for Communities and Local Government website at: http://www.communities.gov.uk/index.asp?id=l156110
Ann Keen: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much funding has been allocated to the London borough of Hounslow for the upgrading and repairs of council housing stock to meet the decent homes standard since 1997. [84430]
Yvette Cooper: Capital investment by the London borough of Hounslow since 1997 via the housing revenue account system is set as follows. ALMO allowances are included in these figures.
| £ million | |
Geraldine Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much has been allocated by English Partnerships to housing renewal in the West End of Morecambe under the West End Masterplan. [85033]
Yvette Cooper: Under the West End Masterplan for the renewal of the West End of Morecombe, English Partnerships have approved an investment of £8.6 million of which £4.5 million has been spent on land assembly and masterplanning works.
Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what use (a) her Department and (b) local authorities make of Intelligent Addressing in geographical information systems. [88069]
Angela E. Smith: The Department of Communities and Local Government (DCLG) has a development and demonstration licence with the Improvement and Development Agency to use the National Land and Property Gazetteer (NLPG) data produced under contract by Intelligent Addressing. NLPG data supports the National Register of Social Housing data collection. DCLG has previously used Intelligent Addressing directly as a contractor to perform address matching.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many hectares of land were classified as (a) urban and (b) suburban in each year since 1990, broken down by region. [84057]
Yvette Cooper: From the Department's statistics for Urban Settlements, the amounts of urban land in England were as follows:
| Hectares | ||
| 1991 | 2001 | |
Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment her Department has made of the likely effects of introducing a land value tax. [88087]
Mr. Woolas: The Department for Communities and Local Government has not made any assessment of the likely effects of introducing a land value tax.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many staff were employed by each London borough in each year since 1997. [87277]
Mr. Woolas: The Department for Communities and Local Government does not collect this information.
Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what estimate she has made of the cost to local authorities of complying with BS 7799 on information security. [88065]
Mr.
Woolas: As part of the Implementing Electronic Government
return process, local authorities were asked to provide information on
compliance with BS 7799 on information security management, as an
advisory good practice outcome relating to the internal organisation
and management practices of the council that are required to help
deliver the people, systemsand service management changes
necessary for e-government. No specific estimate of the costs of BS
7799 compliance has been made, as this outcome is advisory in status
only. However, every local authority in England has been allocated
£900,000 in capital grant up to help in Implementing Electronic
Government up to the end of
2005-06.
Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the contact administration address is for each pension scheme within the Local Government Pension Scheme. [88066]
Mr. Woolas: The information requested has been placed in the Library of the House.
Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government why the Audit Commission will not be reporting on Best Value Performance Indicator 199d for 2005-06. [88068]
Mr. Woolas: Best Value Performance Indicator 199d measures the year-on-year reduction in the numberof incidents and the increase in the number of enforcement actions taken to deal with fly-tipping. The indicator was introduced in 2005-06. It will not be possible to publish data showing year-on-year changes until the indicator has been in place for two years.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much was given to each London borough per person in the Local Government Finance Settlement in each year since 1997. [87322]
Mr. Woolas: The table shows formula grant per head for each London borough for 1997-99 to 2006-07. Formula grant comprises Revenue Support Grant, redistributed business rates and principal formula Police Grant.
| Formula Grant per head | |||||
| £ per head | |||||
| Authority | 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-2000 | 2000-01 | 2001-02 |
| £ per head | |||||
| Authority | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 |
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how much extra funding the Government plan to provide to the Greater London Authority to finance the new responsibilities of the London Mayor. [86781]
Mr. Woolas: In line with our policy of meeting net new burdens costs, the Government are committed to meeting reasonable net additional costs falling on the GLA as a result of its new responsibilities.
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance her Department has issued to local authorities on applications for mineral extraction operations in areas of outstanding natural beauty. [88345]
Meg Munn: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given today.
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (1) what assessment her Department has made of the impact of quarries on (a) residential areas and (b) areas of outstanding natural beauty; [87249]
Meg Munn: Planning guidance to local authorities on planning applications in areas of outstanding natural beauty (AONBs) is set out in Planning Policy Statement (PPS)7 Sustainable Development in Rural Areas. PPS7 states that AONBs have been confirmed by the Government have having the highest standards of protection in relation to landscape and scenic beauty. Major developments (including mineral working) should not take place in these areas except in exceptional circumstances and applications for such developments should be subject to the most rigorous examination. Major development proposals should be demonstrated to be in the public interest before being allowed to proceed and will need to be assessed against the criteria set out in paragraph 22 of PPS7. However, it will be for local planning authorities to decide on a case by case basis whether exceptional circumstances exist which would allow them to grant planning permission for a minerals development in an AONB.
Mr. Hollobone: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will visit Kettering to attend a public meeting to discuss her Department's housing expansion plans for Northamptonshire. [82864]
Yvette Cooper [holding answer 6 July 2006]: We consider that Kettering plays an important part in the growth proposals for North Northamptonshire. We are kept regularly updated on development of the plans to take these forward and I chair the regular Milton Keynes and South Midlands Inter Regional Board. In addition, officials are closely involved with the borough council and other partners in bringing forward housing, growth and other agendas. There have already been a number of ministerial visits to North Northamptonshire and more are planned. DCLG Ministers are more than happy to discuss housing development in Kettering with key partners during future visits to Northamptonshire.
Mr. Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what research she has commissioned on the insulating qualities of multi-foil insulation products. [86744]
Angela E. Smith: The Department for Communities and Local Government commissioned the Building Research Establishment to provide ‘The thermal performance of multi-foil insulation’ a copy of which has been placed in the Library of the House.
Mr. Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what guidance her Department has issued to building control officers regarding the use of multi-foil insulation products. [86749]
Angela E. Smith: The Department for Communities and Local Government issued guidance to building control officers in England and Wales on 19 June, following its circular letter on 30 March in which we mentioned UKAS accreditation. We have since understood that UKAS accreditation was not possible since there was no adopted test method. So the Department wrote to LABC Services and the Association of Consultant Approved Inspectors on 19 June and referred them instead to the Approved Documents for Part L, Conservation of Fuel and Power, and Regulation 7 which sets out ways for assessing fitness for purpose for materials.
Mr. Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how multi-foil insulation products are treated under Approved Document L of the Building Regulations. [86760]
Angela E. Smith: Part L of the Building Regulations and its associated Approved Documents do not refer to multi-foil insulation or any other type of insulation product. The Approved Documents indicate that the methods for calculating thermal performance and establishing the thermal properties of insulation materials must be as described in BR443 “Conventions for U-value calculations”.
Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether the Audit Commission plans to undertake a formal audit of the probity and efficiency of public expenditure on the National Land and Property Gazetteer. [88083]
Mr. Woolas: This is an operational matter for the Audit Commission. The Chief Executive of the Audit Commission has written to the hon. Member and a copy of the letter has been placed in the Library of the House.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the National Land Information Service; and if she will make a statement. [85701]
Mr. Woolas: The National Land Information Service is a community interest company, and the Government do not therefore have any formal role in assessing its effectiveness.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what stock was transferred from the Government wine cellar to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in 2005-06. [85708]
Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what payments the Valuation Office Agency makes to Ordnance Survey (OS) outside the pan-government OS agreement for access to the imagery and photographic data that OS holds. [87350]
Mr. Woolas: The Valuation Office Agency does not take any imagery or photographic data from Ordnance Survey and consequently makes no payment for such.
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what measures exist in Pathways to Work to assist individuals who may be continuously in and out of work due to (a) multiple sclerosis and (b) other long-term and fluctuating medical conditions. [85292]
Mr. Jim Murphy: I have been asked to reply.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government how many planning enforcement notices were issued in each London borough in each year since 1997. [87278]
Meg Munn: The number of planning enforcement notices issued in each London borough in each year since 1997 is presented in the following table:
| Formal enforcement notices issued by London borough councils 1997 to 2005 | |||||||||
| Council name | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 |
| n/a
= Not
available. (1) These councils included areas within London Dockland Development Corporation, however the statistics exclude enforcement within the LDDC. The LDDC served no enforcement notice during 1997 or 1998 when the LDDC was wound up. Note: The number in parenthesis indicates how many quarters were reported. Source: DCLG General Development Control Return, PS1. | |||||||||
Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) of 16 May 2006, Official Report, column 928W, on small business rate relief, how many small firms she estimates claimed relief in 2005-06; and if she will estimate the proportion of small firms who were eligible who claimed the relief. [88249]
Mr. Woolas: This information is not held centrally.
Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what conclusions on (a) the relative merits of (i) private and (ii) public sector contracts for sports and leisure facilities and (b) the future letting of contracts for sport and leisure facilities she drew from the Audit Commission report “Public Sports and Recreational Services”. [87625]
Mr. Caborn: I have been asked to reply.
Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what steps she will take to improve strategic planning in leisure services following the publication of the Audit Commission report “Public Sports and Recreational Services”. [87626]
Mr. Caborn: I have been asked to reply.
Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what research the Valuation Office Agency has undertaken in relation to developing (a) a national property database and (b) a National Spatial Data Infrastructure. [88092]
Mr. Woolas: The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) has maintained a national database of properties in England and Wales to enable it to discharge its statutory functions for many years.
The VOA has not researched the development of a National Spatial Data Infrastructure.
Mr. Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the Answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 10 May 2006, Official Report, columns 956-7W, on the Valuation Office Agency (VOA), when the VOA’s communications strategy for the council tax revaluation was (a) submitted to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and (b) last (i) updated and (ii) amended by the VOA. [88282]
Mr. Woolas: The answer given to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar (Mr. Pickles) of 10 May 2006, Official Report, columns 956-7W, explains that a communications strategy was being drafted by the Valuation Office Agency before the postponement of council tax revaluation in England, announced on20 September 2005.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what assessment the Government have made of whether the Valuation Office Agency’s Automated Valuation Model holds sensitive personal data as defined by the Data Protection Act 1998. [86834]
Mr. Woolas: The Valuation Office Agency’s Automated Valuation Model (AVM) is a processing tool and does not hold data.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many accidents have taken place in establishments for which his Department is responsible in the last 12 months; how many court cases have arisen as a result; how much has been awarded in (a) damages and (b) settlements; and if he will make a statement. [81906]
Mr. Dhanda: The Department has received three personal injury claims relating to accidents on its premises, since 1 July 2005. Two of the cases are ongoing and one was settled out of court, at a cost to my Department of £479.99 to cover costs for physiotherapy and damage to personal property.
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children whose parents have learning difficulties were adopted in each of the last five years for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [86340]
Mr. Dhanda: We do not collect centrally information on parents of children looked after therefore figures are not available for the number of children adopted whose parents have learning difficulties.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what advertising campaigns the Department has run between 2000 and June 2004; and what the (a) date and (b) cost was of each. [87065]
Mr. Dhanda: The Department’s total spend on advertising campaigns was:
| £ | |
| 2000-01 | |
| £ | |
| 2001-02 | |
| £ | |
| 2002-03 | |
| £ | |
| 2003-04 | |
| £ | |
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) what steps he plans to take to provide specialist teacher training for the support of children with autism in mainstream schooling; [86500]
Mr. Dhanda: The framework for teacher training ensures that qualifying and newly qualified teachers, including those who support children with autism in mainstream schools, are aware of their responsibilities to children with special educational needs (SEN) and can plan effectively to meet these children’s needs. Further, in-service training on particular SEN, such as autism, is a matter for schools and local authorities.
“all those who plan or provide for children with an ASD should have some knowledge and understanding of autism”.
Mr. Willis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will publish the most recent review of the British Educational Communications and Technology Agency. [87360]
Phil Hope: The most recent review of Becta was published in March 2003. Copies of the reports are lodged in the Commons Library and are also available on Becta's website:
www.foi.becta.org.uk
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when he expects schools in Brent to receive funding from the Building Schools for the Future programme. [87782]
Jim Knight: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given by my predecessor on 9 January 2006, Official Report, column 394W, when she was advised that Brent has been informed that it may expect to start in the programme in waves 7-9.
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the timetable is for the allocation of cases in (a) private and (b) public law in the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (CAFCASS). [86962]
Mr. Dhanda: This is a matter for CAFCASS. Anthony Douglas, the Chief Executive, has written to the hon. Member with this information and a copy of his reply has been placed in the House Library.
In my capacity as Acting Chief Executive, whilst Mr Douglas is on leave, I am responding to the recent parliamentary question that you tabled.
PQ 86962 - what the timetable is for the allocation of cases in (a) private and (b) public law in the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service.
CAFCASS aims to allocate all cases at the earliest opportunity. In public law we have a Key Performance Indicator, to allocate at least 70% of cases within 2 days of receipt by March 2007. At the end of May 2006 five of our ten regions are exceeding this target. The national average was 55.3%. In addition, we have a Key Performance Indicator, to allocate 98% of public law cases within 28 days of receipt. At the end of May we achieved this in 92% of cases, with 5 regions exceeding the target.
We have an internal performance indicator that there will be no more than 4% of Private Law cases unallocated. At the end of May 3% of cases were unallocated. All but 4 regions met the target as 97% of requests received had been allocated by the month end.
Mr. Wills: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many child care places were available in Swindon in each year since 1997. [86636]
Beverley Hughes: The available information on child care places, for Swindon local authority area, is shown in Tables 1 and 2.
| Table 1: Number( 1, 2 ) of day care places for children under eight years of age by type of provider, Swindon local authority area, position at 31 March each year, 1997 to 2002 | ||||||
| Type of provider | 1997( 3) | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 |
| n/a
= Not
available. (1) Figures have been rounded to the nearest 10 or 100 places. (2) Data Source: Children’s Day Care Facilities Survey. (3) Affected by local government reorganisation on 1 April 1997. (4) From 1999, places were counted once for each school holiday. Before 1999, places were counted once each year. (5) Under 5. | ||||||
| Table 2: Number( 1, 2 ) of registered child care places for children under eight years of age by type of care, Swindon local authority area, position at 31 March each year, 2003 to 2006 | ||||
| Type of care | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 |
| (1)
Rounded to the nearest 100
places. (2) Data Source: Ofsted. | ||||
John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many Part 8 reviews into child deaths have occurred in each local authority area in each of the last 10 years. [84571]
Mr. Dhanda: The Child Protection Database, maintained by the Commission for Social Care Inspection, provides the data in the table on the numbers of confirmed Serious Case Reviews (SCRs), following the death of a child, in each local authority since 2000. Accurate data prior to 2000 are not available. The following table includes only those authorities where a child death has led to a confirmed SCR and provides an overall total for between 2000-05. In order to maintain the confidentiality of individual children who were the subject of a SCR, ((1)—) denotes fewer than three SCRs. The data for 2006 are not yet complete.
| 2000-05 | |
| Responsible Council | Number |
| (1
)Fewer than three
SCRs. | |
Mr. Wills: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many students from mainland China studied in England in each year since 1997. [86632]
Bill Rammell: The latest available information is given in the table:
| Students from mainland China who studied( 1) in English higher education institutions in each year since 1997 | |
| Academic year | Number |
| (1)
Figures include both undergraduate and postgraduate students and also
full-time and part-time
students. Notes: 1. Figures are on a snapshot basis as at 1 December (excluding those writing up, on sabbatical or dormant). 2. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 5. Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) student record data. | |
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) what guidance is available to children's trusts on joint working between agencies responsible for supporting children with communication disabilities; [86773]
Mr. Dhanda: The Joint Planning and Commissioning Framework for Children, Young People, and Maternity Services, published in March 2006, aims to help local partners to put in place a unified planning and commissioning system which will put improved outcomes at the centre of their thinking, will create a clear picture of what children and young people need, will make the best use of resources, and will join up services so that children and young people with multiple needs experience a seamless service.
Mr. Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) what projections he has made of the number and proportion of pupils in the fourth key stage who will opt to study for (a) a general diploma and (b) a specialised diploma in each of the first five years following their introduction; [87353]
Jim Knight: The Chapter 6, paragraph 18, of the ‘Department’s Five Year Strategy for Children and Learners’, published on 8 July 2004, set out our aim to extend vocational options across all schools as part of our commitment to strengthening choice and the personalisation of the curriculum. To support this aim, the Strategy stated that we will dramatically increase the number of 14-16 year olds studying vocational subjects in schools, colleges and training providers to just over 180,000 by 2007-08.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to the answer of 6 July 2006, Official Report, column 1384W, on the Electronic Children’s Database (1) what plans he has to prevent accidental loss or theft of data stored in the index; [86889]
(7) what plans he has to introduce offences for the misuse or abuse of the database; [86903]
Beverley Hughes: In relation to questions (86889 and 86903), the Information Sharing Index will be designed to ensure a high level of physical and environmental security to protect against natural hazards that could interrupt service. Arrangements will be in place to enable operations to continue effectively, notwithstanding any system component failures. There will be an effective and tested contingency plan that would, for example, ensure that a back-up system is in place.
Mr. Willetts: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many pupils under the age of 18 years sat (a) SATs (b) GCSEs, (c) GNVQs and (d) A-levels in each year since 1997. [86446]
Jim Knight [holding answer 20 July 2006]: The information required is in the following table.
| Pupils under the age of 18 entered for tests or exams | |||||||||
| Thousand | |||||||||
| 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | |
| (1)
The 2004 and 2005 figures have not been made available as they are not
directly comparable to figures prior to and including 2003. This is to
reflect the
following: in 2004 a trial took place in which some local authorities (LAs) were asked to only submit teacher assessments to the Department, and the remaining LAs continued to submit both. in 2005, for the first time, schools were only required to report teacher assessments. (2) Figures are calculated as pupils eligible for assessment less those who were absent (A), disapplied (D) and “working towards” level 1 (W). (3) Figures are calculated as pupils eligible for assessment less those who were absent (A), disapplied (D) and not require to be entered for the reading tests (X). (4) Figures are calculated as pupils eligible for assessment less those who were absent (A), working below the level of the test (B) or disapplied/unable to access the test (A/T). | |||||||||
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of (a) primary and (b) secondary school children are taught at least one foreign language. [87493]
Jim Knight: The Department does not collect data on the number of primary school children learning languages. However, in January 2005 the findings of Headspace, a survey of head teachers by Education Guardian and Edcoms, indicated that 56 per cent. of all primary schools in England were planning for or implementing language learning programmes to their pupils, (b) In 2005, the percentage of pupils at the end of key stage 4 attempting any modern foreign language examination was 59 per cent. (375,300 pupils out the cohort of 633,400).
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2006, Official Report, column 1984W, on further education colleges, from which providers’ prospectuses he found evidence of these types of courses. [86896]
Bill Rammell: Information about tarot card reading, stand-up comedy and various forms of cake decorating courses is available on the learndirect website (http://www.learndirect.co.uk/) or the London Floodlight website (http://www.floodlight.co.uk/). The websites provide course information plus details of those colleges and other providers which offer the course.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many students re-sat at least one examination at (a) GCSE and (b) A-level in each of the past five years. [86862]
Jim Knight: The information requested is not readily available and can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many completed examination papers at (a) GCSE and (b) A-level were lost in each of the past five years. [86870]
Jim Knight: The National Assessment Agency (NAA) collected data on the number of GCSE, AS and A-level examination scripts missing on results day in 2004 and 2005; comparable data is not available for previous years. More than 20 million exam scripts circulated in summer 2005 across all awarding bodies. The number of scripts missing prior to marking was as follows:
| Missing scripts | ||
| 2004 | 2005 | |
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on the creation of a gifted pupils’ register; and what assessment he has made of the merits of such a proposal. [86950]
Jim Knight: The National Register is a key part of our programme to support gifted and talented learners in our schools. The National Register will help schools to identify these learners, as requested in the Schools Census, including those aged 11-19 who are eligible for membership of the National Academy for Gifted and Talented Youth. It will enable schools and local authorities to target interventions where necessary to help pupils at risk of underachieving to fulfil their potential. We are also exploring whether higher education institutions might use data from the register to assist with their widening participation strategies.
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what recent discussions he has had with the Home Department on protection of children on the internet and the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Bill. [85737]
Mr.
Dhanda: My right hon. Friend and I have
been informed of the content of discussions between DfES and Home
Office officials and representatives of the industry about the
provisions in the Bill for vetting chat
room moderators. My hon. Friend the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of
State for Police and Security wrote to the Moderation Sub Group of the
Home Secretary's Taskforce for Child Protection on the Internet setting
out the two Departments' response to the concerns raised by the group.
Discussions are continuing with a view to clarifying how the
requirements in the Bill will work alongside the “Good Practice
Guidance for the Moderation of Interactive Services for
Children”, which the taskforce published in November 2005. There
is ongoing discussion at official level on matters arising from the
Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Bill which impact upon both Departments
as and when they occur as well as a range of other areas concerning
child protection on the internet. The taskforce child protection
measures sub group have, for example, set up a working group, of which
DfES is part, to look at the safety issues for children caused by the
development and growth of social networking
sites.
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if his Department will take steps to ringfence schools spending to ensure the appropriate level of investment is allocated to providing ergonomic, height adjustable furniture in schools; and if he will make a statement. [87415]
Jim Knight: The Government believe that schools are best placed to decide how to deploy the resources available to them through their delegated budgets and allocations of devolved formula capital and to decide on the appropriate level of investment to maintain the fixtures and fittings of their schools, including ergonomic furniture.
Mr. Salmond: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what proportion of (a) primary and (b) secondary schools have a playing field or playground where students can practise sports and participate in physical education lessons; and how much land was in use as school playing fields in (i) 1997 and (ii) the most recent year for which figures are available. [86872]
Jim Knight [holding answer 20 July 2006]: Data on areas of school playing fields and external spaces were supplied to my Department by local education authorities in 2001 and 2003. However, the completeness and quality of the data are not good enough accurately to assess the proportion of schools that have playing fields or playgrounds where students can practice sports and participate in physical education lessons. Nor can the data provide information on the total area of land in use as school playing fields.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many (a) primary and (b) secondary schools have toilets fitted with (i) hippos, (ii) cistern and flush controls and (iii) other water saving devices. [87376]
Jim Knight: The Department does not hold information on how many schools have fitted cistern displacement devices (such as hippos), cistern and flush controls and other water saving devices. Howeverthe Water Regulations (Water Regulations Advisory scheme 2005) require automatic controls to be fittedto all new or refurbished urinal flushing cisterns. Comprehensive guidance on the fitting of water saving devices in schools is available in a new free publication “Sustainable water management in schools(1)”.
(1) Publication reference CIRIA W12, 66 pages, available for free download from http://www.ciria.org/downloads.htm
Mrs. Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which colleges offered a British Sign Language course for the academic years (a) 2003-04, (b) 2004-05, (c) 2005-06 and (d) 2006-07; which colleges expect to offer such a course in 2007-08; and what public funding supported or is planned to support such courses in each year. [86912]
Bill Rammell: Data on the particular courses offered by colleges are not held centrally. However, the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) do hold information on which FE providers have at least one LSC-funded learner taking a British Sign Language course for 2003/04 (336 providers in total) and 2004/05 (312 providers). A list of these FE providers will be placed in the House of Commons Library. Full year figures for 2005/06 are not yet available as the academic year which spans 1 August to 31 July has not finished, but an initial list based on enrolments at 1 October 2005 will also be provided in the House Library. Full-year information for 2005/06 is likely to be available in December 2006.
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) what advisory support services (a) are provided by his Department and (b) the Department funds the voluntary and community sector which offer information and support to children identified as having communication disabilities; [87151]
Mr. Dhanda: The Department does not itself provide advisory support services for children with communication disabilities. We have however published a detailed information booklet for parents on speech and language difficulties under our Early Support Programme and we continue to look for opportunities to work in collaboration with relevant voluntary sector organisations. We have, for example, given grants for particular projects to the Association For All Speech Impaired Children (AFASIC), I CAN, the Aiding Communication in Education Centres and the Selective Mutism Information and Research Association (SMIRA).
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many and what percentage of graduates were paying back income-contingent student loans in each year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [84697]
Bill Rammell: Borrowers enter repayment status in the April after they leave their course as they are in principle, eligible to repay their loans. However, borrowers only make repayments when they are earning over £15,000 and those earning less are not required to make any repayments.
| Financial year | ||||
| 2003-04 | 2002-03 | 2001-02 | 2000-01 | |
| (1
)Figures include those who made a repayment but who are not in
repayment
status. Note: Numbers are rounded to the nearest 100. | ||||
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what estimates he has made of the average time graduates in each year since 1990 will take to pay off (a) mortgage style student loans and (b) income contingent student loans; and if he will make a statement. [86072]
Bill Rammell: The currently estimated average times for loans to be fully repaid are (a) around eight years for mortgage-style loans and (b) around 13 years for income-contingent loans. There is no evidence available to suggest that there is any difference in time taken to repay between particular borrower cohort years.
Mr. Wills: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many places are available on Sure Start schemes in Swindon; and what percentage of eligible children are on each scheme. [86637]
Beverley Hughes: There are three Sure Start children’s centres up and running in Swindon offering services, including 56 child care places, to 2,739(1 )children under five and their families. These build on the earlier Sure Start Local Programme set up in 2001 to offer services to 804 children under four. Information on numbers using children’s centres’ services is not available yet, however information for the month of March, 2005 (the latest available) shows 28 per cent.(2) of children in Swindon had significant contact (that is, a home visit or attendance at a centre-based activity) with the Penhill and Pinehurst Sure Start programme.
(1) 2,739 children include 804 children previously served by the1 SSLP in Swindon that has become a children’s centre.
(2 ) Source:
Sure Start Local Programme data returns March 2005.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many children have participated in Sure Start schemes in each constituency since its introduction. [87377]
Beverley Hughes: The information requested by constituency is not collected centrally. Between 1999-2003, 524 Sure Start local programmes were approved to deliver services to 400,000 children aged under 4 and their families in disadvantaged areas. The latest information available (for March 2005) shows an average of 23 per cent. of children had significant contact (that is a home visit or at a centre based activity) with their local Sure Start programme. We expect all of these to become children’s centres providing services to children aged under 5 and their families. The first children’s centres were approved in 2003. By the end of September 2006 we expect children’s centre services to be offering services to 893,977 children. By March 2008 we expect this to rise to 2,132,279 children across England, including all those living in the 30 per cent. most deprived areas.
Sir Peter Soulsby: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what interpretation and translation service provision his Department makes for people (a) visiting his Department, (b) telephoning his Department and (c) visiting his Department's website. [87379]
Mr. Dhanda: The procedure for visitors and telephone calls is to use the DfES internal network services. The network provides information on officers who are native or fluent in a language and can be called upon when required.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what his most recent estimate is of the levels of truancy in secondary schools in (a) rural and (b) non-rural areas in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement. [85944]
Jim Knight: The Department does not hold data on pupils recorded as truant. However, the figures for the proportion of half days missed due to unauthorised absence (of which truancy forms a part) in maintained mainstream secondary schools in (a) rural and (b) non-rural areas in each year since 1997 are given in the table as follows:
| Percentage of half days missed in maintained mainstream secondary schools( 1 ) due to unauthorised absence( 2) | ||
| Rural areas | Non-rural areas | |
| (1)
Includes middle schools as
deemed. (2) Figures are only available to 1 decimal place prior to 2001/02. | ||
Jeff Ennis: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many students in (a) Barnsley and (b) Doncaster are exempt from tuition fees. [87636]
Bill Rammell: The number of students in Barnsley and Doncaster local authority making no contribution to their tuition fees in 2004/05 was 970 and 1,430(1) respectively.
(1) Numbers rounded to the nearest 10 students.
Mr. Pope: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many people under the age of 25 years were not in education, employment or training in (a) Hyndburn and (b) England in (i) the last year for which figures are available and (ii) 1997. [86234]
Mr. Dhanda: The following table shows the percentage of 16 to 24-year-olds not in education, employment or training for Hyndburn constituency, Lancashire LEA and England. Figures are for 2004 and are the latest available; figures for 1997 are not available.
| Geographic area | Percentage of 16 to 24-year-olds not in education, employment or training, 2004( 1) |
| (1)
To reduce the margin of error, figures have been produced by combining
information from the Local Labour Force Survey for 2002, 2003 and 2004.
However, sample sizes for Hyndburn and Lancashire are still small and
are subject to sampling variability. Care should be taken when
interpreting the
figures. | |
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what representations he has received from university admissions tutors on the relative value of A-levels and the International Baccalaureate in admission assessments; and if he will make a statement. [85961]
Bill Rammell [holding answer 18 July 2006]: I am not aware of any such representations. Higher education institutions are autonomous organisations and are entirely responsible for their own admission assessments, entry requirements, and decisions.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the staffing costs were of each (a) university and (b) former polytechnic in(i) 1976-77, (ii) 1979-80, (iii) 1985-86, (iv) 1996-97, (v) 1997-98, (vi) 2001-02 and (vii) 2004-05; and how many full-time equivalent students there were at each university in each year. [85290]
Bill Rammell: The latest available information is given in the following tables. Information for the former polytechnics for the years prior to 1996-97 is not held centrally. Figures for 1979-80 were not published; figures for 1978-79 are given instead.
| Expenditure on total staff costs and student full-time equivalent numbers Universities in England | ||||||
| 1976/77 | 1978/79 | 1985/86 | ||||
| Institution name | Staffing costs (£000) | Full-time equivalent student load | Staffing costs (£000) | Full-time equivalent student load | Staffing costs (£000) | Full-time equivalent student load |
| Source: University Grants Committee. | ||||||
| Expenditure on total staff costs and student full-time equivalent numbers Universities, former Polytechnics and University Colleges in England | |||||||||
| Expenditure (£000)( 1) | Student FTE numbers( 2) | ||||||||
| Institution | 1996/97 | 1997/98 | 2001/02 | 2004/05 | 1996/97 | 1997/98 | 2001/02 | 2004/05 | |
Institute of Psychiatry (associated with King’s College London) | |||||||||
The University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology | |||||||||
United Medical and Dental Schools, Guy’s and St. Thomas’s Hospitals | |||||||||
| Notes: — indicates: No separate finance record was collected for that institution in that year. No Student Record was collected separately for that institution in that year. Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency’s Finance and Student records 1996-97,1997-98,2001-02, 2004-05 Students ftes have been rounded to the nearest 5. | |||||||||
Mr. Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills (1) what support is provided by his Department for partially-sighted and blind pupils in (a) primary, (b) secondary, (c) further and (d) higher education; [86542]
Mr. Dhanda: The special educational needs (SEN) code of practice provides advice to local authorities and schools on their statutory duties to identify, assess and make provision for children who have special educational needs, including children who are blindor partially sighted. The code sets out a graduated approach to providing support. Many children who are blind or partially sighted will have statements of SEN. All statements are reviewed at least annually. The purpose of the review is to consider a child’s progress, to ensure they are achieving desired outcomes and, if necessary, to amend their statements to reflect newly identified needs and provision.
(1) The total number of students in receipt of DSAs involves an element of double-counting since a student can have more than one allowance.
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much capital expenditure there has been on schools which come under York local education authority in each year since 1986. [86524]
Jim Knight: Records are not maintained centrally of local authority capital expenditure on schools, as this is decided in accordance with local asset management plans and will depend upon local authorities’ total sources of available funding. The Department has maintained records of capital allocations to local authorities for schools since 1996, and those for York city council and schools in its area are set out in the following table:
| £ million | |
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how much per child was spent on (a) (i) pre-school, (ii) primary school and (iii) 11 to 16-year-old secondary school pupils in York schools and (b) sixth formers (A) in York schools and (B) at York College in each year since 1996-97 (1) in cash and (2) at current prices. [86525]
Jim Knight: The Department does not hold any comparable expenditure information for pre primary pupils and it is not possible to distinguish figures for sixth formers from 11 to 16-year-old secondary pupils. The Department does not collect figures for York College. The available information is contained in the following tables:
| School based expenditure per pupil( 1,2,3,4,5 ) and combined local authority and school based expenditure per pupil( 1,6 ) since 1996-97( 7,8,9) | ||||
| £ cash terms( 10,11) | ||||
| Primary school based expenditure per pupil( 1,2,3,4) | Pre-primary and primary school based expenditure per pupil( 1,2,3,4) | Secondary school based expenditure per pupil( 1,2,3,5) | Combined LA and school based expenditure per pupil( 1,6) | |
| £ real terms (2005-06 prices)( 10,11,12) | ||||
| Primary school based expenditure perpupil( 1,2,3,4) | Pre-primary and primary school based expenditure per pupil( 1,2,3,4) | Secondary school based expenditure per pupil( 1,2,3,5) | Combined LA and school based expenditure per pupil( 1,6) | |
| (1)
The expenditure data to 1998-99 are drawn from the annual
‘RO1’ spending returns which local authorities submitted
to the Department of Environment, Transport and the Regions. Figures
for 1999-2000 to 2001-02 are drawn from section 52 (table 3) outturn
statements which local authorities submitted to the DfES. Figures for
2002-03 onwards are taken from section 52 (table A) outturn statements.
The change in sources is shown by the blank
rows. (2) School based expenditure includes only expenditure incurred directly by local authority maintained schools. This includes the pay of teachers and school-based support staff, school premises costs, books and equipment, and certain other supplies and services, less any capital items funded from recurrent spending and income from sales, fees and charges and rents and rates. This excludes the central cost of support services such as home to school transport, local authority administration and the financing of capital expenditure. The pupil data are drawn from the DfES Annual Schools Census adjusted to be on a financial year basis. (3) From 2002-03 onwards the school based expenditure calculation is broadly similar to the calculation in previous years. However, 2001-02 and earlier years includes all premature retirement compensation (PRC) and Crombie payments, mandatory PRC payments and other indirect employee expenses, while from 2002-03 only the schools element of these categories is included. In 2001-02 this accounted for approximately £70 per pupil of the England total, while the schools element of these categories accounted for approximately £50 per pupil of the England total in 2002-03. Also, for some LAs, expenditure that had previously been attributed to the school sectors was reported within the LA part of the form from 2002-03 and would therefore be excluded from the school based expenditure calculation, though this is not quantifiable from existing sources. (4) Figures for the primary sector alone were not available until the inception of section 52 in financial year 1999-2000. The pre-primary figures are not sufficiently robust to use in this reply. (5) Secondary school based expenditure includes all expenditure incurred directly by local authority maintained secondary schools. It is not possible from existing sources to distinguish this expenditure between expenditure on 11 to 16-year-olds and expenditure on 6th form pupils attending maintained secondary schools. (6) Combined local authority and school based expenditure includes all expenditure on the education of children in local authority maintained establishments and pupils educated by the authority other than in maintained establishments. This includes both school based expenditure and all elements of central LA expenditure except youth and community and capital expenditure from revenue (CERA). Pupil figures include all pre-primary pupils, including those under fives funded by the authority and being educated in private settings (only available from 1999-2000), pupils educated in maintained mainstream schools and any other local authority maintained pupils. All pupil numbers are adjusted to be on a financial year basis. (7) Spending in 1997-98 reflects the transfer of monies from local government to central Government for the nursery vouchers scheme. These were returned to local government from 1998-99. (8) Figures prior to 1999-2000 exclude any expenditure on service, strategy and regulation. (9) The expenditure data for 1999-2000 onwards reflect the return of grant maintained schools to local authority maintenance. (10) ‘—’denotes figures are not available or have not been scored on a consistent basis (11) Figures are rounded to the nearest £10. (12) Cash figures are converted to 2005-06 prices using the 30 June 2006 gross domestic product (GDP) deflators. Note: As reported by York local authority as at 17 July 2006. | ||||
Mr. Swire: To ask the Prime Minister (1) when (a) he and (b) his officials have held meetings in the last 12 months with casino operators interested in securing licences under the Gambling Act 2005; where each meeting took place; and what was discussed; [83362]
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Prime Minister (1) if he will list the meetings he has had with representatives of the Anschutz Entertainment Group and associated companies since 1997; [85660]
The Prime Minister: My officials and I have meetings with a wide range of organisations and individuals on a wide range of subjects. Information relating to internal meetings, discussion and advice is not disclosed as to do so could harm the frankness and candour of internal discussion.
Sir Michael Spicer: To ask the Prime Minister when he will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire of 6 June about whaling and global warming. [87934]
The Prime Minister: My Office had no record of receiving this correspondence at the time this question was tabled. However, my Office has since received copies of the letters. These have been forwarded to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs for reply.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Prime Minister whether it is his policy that in future the House will be asked to vote before the UK declares war on another country; and if he will make a statement. [87599]
The Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave my hon. Friend the Member for Pendle (Mr. Prentice) on 15 February 2006, Official Report, column 2033W.
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Prime Minister where he purchased the sweater recently given as a gift to the President of the United States; how much the item cost; and where it was made. [87265]
The Prime Minister: It would not be appropriate to disclose this information.
Lynne Jones: To ask the Prime Minister pursuant to Paragraph B of the Government's Response to the Intelligence and Security Committee's Annual Report 2005-06, Cm 6865, what arrangements are in place under the Joint Intelligence Committee Chairman which are intended to ensure the opportunity for challenge and dissent at all levels across the intelligence community. [87535]
The Prime Minister: At each stage in the preparation of Joint Intelligence Committee (JIC) Assessments (the drafting of a paper, its consideration by the Current Intelligence Group, its review prior to circulation to the JIC, in discussion at JIC itself), there is careful testing of assumptions, inferences and judgements and encouragement of active debate about them. The challenge function within the Assessments staff itself has been strengthened.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Prime Minister what representations he (a) has made and (b) plans to make to the (i) Government of Lebanon, (ii) Government of Syria, (iii) Government of Iran and (iv) United Nations about the honouring of the agreement brokered by the United Nations to protect the Northern Border of the state of Israel; and if he will make a statement. [87340]
The Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to my statement of 18 July 2006, Official Report, columns 151-54, and to the debate in the House on International Affairs on 20 July 2006, Official Report, columns 510-67.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Prime Minister what discussions he had with (a) the Deputy Prime Minister and (b) officials from the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in relation to the sale of the millennium dome. [86021]
The Prime Minister: I have regular meetings and discussions with ministerial colleagues and others on a wide range of subjects. Information relating to internal meetings, discussion and advice is not disclosed as to do so could harm the frankness and candour of internal discussion.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Prime Minister (1) when the Cabinet Sub-Committee on the sale of the millennium dome was (a) created and (b) dissolved; [85661]
(2) which Minister chaired the Cabinet Sub-Committee on the sale of the millennium dome. [85662]
The Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave my hon. Friend the then Member for Birmingham, Erdington (Robin Corbett) on 19 December 2000, Official Report, column 108W. The Ministerial Group on the Millennium Dome (MISC10) was dissolved in September 2003.
Mr. MacNeil: To ask the Prime Minister what his policy is on informing the House when a Minister is questioned by the police in connection with a criminal inquiry. [86577]
The Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the press briefing given by my Official Spokesman on Friday 14 July. A transcript of this is available on the No. 10 website and a copy has been placed in the Library of the House.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Prime Minister if he will make is his policy to strengthen the ministerial code to ensure that Ministers’ taxation declarations and assessments are up-to-date. [87588]
The Prime Minister: Ministers’ personal taxation declarations and assessments are subject to the same rules as other citizens.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Prime Minister if he will make it his policy to ensure that a public register is maintained of all ministerial payments to charity in respect of free or subsidised overnight accommodation which is made available to them or their families. [87586]
The Prime Minister: Hospitality received by Ministers, including when a charitable donation has been made, is declared in the Register of Members’ Interests as appropriate.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Prime Minister what plans he had (a) to visit America in July 2005 and (b) to visit Mr. Anschutz's ranch in Colorado. [86285]
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Prime Minister what plans he has to visit the Middle East. [87122]
The Prime Minister: For security reasons, my future engagements are announced as and when appropriate.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Prime Minister which constituencies the Prime Minister has visited since 1997; and on how many occasions in each case. [88199]
The Prime Minister: I refer my hon. Friend to the answer I gave the hon. Member for Southend, West (Mr. Amess) on 2 May 2006, Official Report, columns 1385-1387W.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Prime Minister how (a) the Segway transporter, (b) jewellery, watches and costumery, (c) the electric Ferrari, (d) the two daggers, (e) wine and (f) the archaeological artefacts gifted to his Office by the State of Israel and listed on the Donated Asset Reserve are displayed. [87597]
The Prime Minister: The arrangements for the handling of gifts are set out in chapter 5 of the Ministerial Code.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Prime Minister what the mechanism is by which Ministers may sponsor potential candidates for the Privy Council; and if he will make a statement. [87595]
The Prime Minister: I submit nominations to the Queen seeking her approval.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Prime Minister who provided the tractor that the Prime Minister used to launch Red Tractor Day, in Downing Street on 20 April; and where it was manufactured. [87421]
The Prime Minister: The Red Tractor Day launch was organised by Assured Food Standards (AFS), who administer the Red Tractor logo.
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Prime Minister whether he was consulted by the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the appointment of Sir David Varney as a senior adviser on Transformational Government. [88216]
The Prime Minister: I have regular meetings and discussions with ministerial colleagues and others on a wide range of subjects. Information relating to internal meetings, discussion and advice is not disclosed as to do so could harm the frankness and candour of internal discussion.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what advertising campaigns the Department has run between 2000 and June 2004; and what the (a) date and (b) cost was of each. [87051]
Mrs. McGuire: The Department for Work and Pensions was formed on 8 June 2001 from parts of the former Department for Social Security, the former Department for Education and Employment, and the Employment Service. Information prior to 2001 is not held centrally and can be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
| (a) Dates of activity | (b) Annual cost (£000) |
| Notes: 1. The table does not include the following as the information is not held centrally and to obtain it would incur disproportionate cost. Spend by non-departmental bodies for which the Department is responsible details of highly localised publicity activity by the Department’s customer-facing businesses recruitment or procurement advertising. 2. The figures in the table refers to media spend only, excluding production and other costs. 3. All figures have been rounded to the nearest thousand. 4. All figures are exclusive of VAT. | |
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much was spent per head of population in (a) England, (b) Scotland and (c) Wales on the Age Positive campaign in (i) 2004-05 and (ii) 2005-06; and how much has been spent in 2006-07. [78876]
Mr. Jim Murphy: The Age Positive campaign operates nationally, covering England, Scotland and Wales. Costs for Scotland and Wales are not available separately. The approximate spend on the campaign was £646,000 for 2004-05, £913,000 for 2005-06 and up to the end of May 2006 £94,000 for 2006-07.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will take steps to improve the training received by health care professionals involved in the application process for benefit assessmentsin respect of (a) multiple sclerosis and (b) other long-term fluctuating conditions. [86236]
Mrs. McGuire: All Medical Services doctors who carry out benefit assessments receive training in disability assessment medicine, which is constantly evaluated and improved. The training includes the need to take account of long-term fluctuating conditions, such as multiple sclerosis, and how these conditions affect a person over a period of time.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of pensioners in (i) rural and (ii) non-rural areas entitled to but not claiming state pension in each year since 1997; and what proportion this figure represents of all those entitled to state pension. [85924]
James Purnell: The information requested is not available. However, the proportion of pensioner units in receipt of some state pension income in Great Britain is shown in the table. The 2 per cent. without state pension income may include those not entitled as well as those deferring their state pension or misreporting their income when asked.
| Percentage | |
| Notes: 1. Results are for all pensioner benefit units, where a pensioner couple is defined as a couple where the man is at or above state pension age. 2. State pension income includes income from other contributory benefits for the elderly including widows’ benefits and incapacity benefit. 3. Results are based on survey respondents’ identification of different elements of benefit income, and are therefore subject to misreporting. Source: Table 3.3, Pensioners Income Series 2004/05 which is based upon data from the Family Resources Survey. | |
Mr. Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate (a) the total amount of (i) incapacity benefit, (ii) income support, (iii) jobseeker’s allowance, (iv) pension credit, (v) council tax benefit and (vi) housing benefit erroneously paid to prisoners in each year since 1997 and (b) the number of prisoners involved in each case. [77993]
Mr. Plaskitt: Information is not available for incapacity benefit, council tax benefit, and housing benefit. The available information on the amount of income support, jobseeker’s allowance, and pension credit overpaid due to fraud or customer error is in the table.
There are no estimates available for how many prisoners would have been involved.
| Estimates of benefit overpaid to prisoners through fraud or customer error | |||
| £ million | |||
| Incorrectness | Income support | Jobseeker’s allowance | Pension credit |
| Notes: 1. All overpayments estimates rounded to the nearest £1 million. 2. Estimates are based on sampling exercises. Benefit paid incorrectly to prisoners form a small proportion of total overpayments. Estimates for them are based on reviews of small numbers of cases and so are subject to large sampling errors and other uncertainties. Sampling uncertainty is expressed in the form of confidence intervals - these have not been provided in these tables. 3. Estimates for overpayments to prisoners were not reported separately for earlier years. | |||
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of people entitled to but not claiming (a) housing benefit, (b) council tax benefit, (c) winter fuel payments, (d) disability living allowance, (e) incapacity benefit, (f) income support, (g) jobseeker’s allowance and (h) child support in each year since 1997-98, broken down by (i) rural areas and (ii) non-rural areas; what estimate he has made of the amount of unclaimed benefit in each case; and if he will make a statement. [84616]
Mr. Plaskitt: Estimates for the main income-related benefits—income support/minimum income guarantee, pension credit, housing benefit, council tax benefit and income-based jobseeker’s allowance—for eligible private household population in Great Britain, are available in the DWP report entitled “Income Related Benefits Estimates of Take- Up”. Copies of the latest publication, which describes patterns in take-up since 1997-98, together with past reports, are available in the Library.
No estimates are available for incapacity benefit.
Child support is not a benefit.
Jeff Ennis: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people are in receipt of carer’s allowance in (a) Barnsley East and Mexborough, (b) Barnsley and (c) Doncaster. [86381]
Mrs. McGuire: The administration of carer’s allowance is a matter for the Chief Executive of the Disability and Carers Service, Mr. Terry Moran. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people are in receipt of carer’s allowance in (a) Barnsley, East and Mexborough (b) Barnsley and (c) Doncaster.
The Minister for Disabled People, Anne McGuire MP, promised you a substantive reply from the Chief Executive of the Disability and Carers Service.
The information requested is in the following table:
| Carer’s allowance recipients as at November 2005 | |
| Number | |
| Definitions
and Conventions: "-" nil or negligible; "." not applicable; Caseload figures are rounded to the nearest 10 and expressed in thousands. Totals may not sum due to rounding. Notes: 1. Only cases in payment are shown (those with underlying entitlement but not actually receiving payment have been excluded). 2. Government office region, local authorities and parliamentary constituencies have been allocated using the ONS postcode directory. Source: DWP Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study. | |
I hope you find the information helpful.
Mr. Hepburn: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) how many people are in receipt of carer’s allowance in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) Great Britain; and how many there were in each year since its inception; [85867]
Mrs. McGuire: The administration of carer’s allowance is a matter for the Chief Executive of the Disability and Carers Service, Mr. Terry Moran. He will write to my hon. Friend with the information requested.
You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) how many people are in receipt of a Carer’s Allowance in (a) Jarrow constituency (b) South Tyneside (c) the North East and (d) the UK; and how many there were in each year since its inception; and (2) how many people over the age of 60 have been registered as carers in (a) Jarrow constituency, (b) South Tyneside, (c) the North East and (d) the UK in each year since 1997.
The Minister for Disabled People, Anne McGuire MP, promised you a substantive reply from the Chief Executive of the Disability and Carers Service.
You have kindly confirmed that your second question referred specifically to how many people over the age of 60 are in receipt of Carer’s Allowance in your constituency and in the UK.
Prior to 2001, reliable figures for the number of people in receipt of Carer’s Allowance are not available because data available then did not distinguish between those in payment and those with underlying payment.
The information available is provided in the attached Appendix.
I hope you find the information helpful.
Appendix:
| Number of Carer’s Allowance recipients as at November( 1) of each year from 2001 to 2005 | ||||
| Jarrow Parliamentary Constituency | South Tyneside LA | North East GOR | Great Britain | |
| Number of Carer’s Allowance recipients aged 60 and over, as at November( 1) of each year from 2001 to 2005 | ||||
| Jarrow Parliamentary Constituency | South Tyneside LA | North East GOR | Great Britain | |
| Definitions
and
Conventions: “—” Nil or Negligible; “.” Not applicable; Caseload figures are rounded to the nearest ten. Totals may not sum due to rounding. (1) Only cases in payment are shown (those with underlying entitlement but not actually receiving payment have been excluded). Notes: 1. Figures are only available for GB because the Department for Social Security Northern Ireland (NI) is responsible for NI statistics. 2. 2001 and 2002 figures are as at December. 2003, 2004 and 2005 figures are as at November. 3. Government Office Region, Local Authorities and Parliamentary constituencies have been allocated using the ONS postcode directory. Source: DWP Information Directorate: Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study for 2003-2005 and 100% samples for 2001-2002. | ||||
Mr. Kemp: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many and what percentage of children in (a) Houghton and Washington, East constituency and (b) Sunderland city council area have been lifted out of poverty since 1997. [87365]
Mr. Jim Murphy: Information below regional level is not available.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many children were living in poverty in (a) Brent, East and (b) Brent in each year since 1997. [87424]
Mr. Jim Murphy: Information below regional level is not available.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will list the unnumbered Command Papers produced by his Department in each session since 1976; how (a) hon. Members and (b) members of the public can (i) inspect and (ii) obtain copies; and if he will make a statement. [81658]
Mrs. McGuire: Documents which are laid before Parliament as unnumbered Command Papers are generally restricted to Explanatory Notes to Treaties, Explanatory Memorandum to Statutory Instruments and some Treasury Minutes. All other documents are published in the numbered Command Papers series.
A complete list of unnumbered Command Papers can only be produced at disproportionate cost.
Copies of all unnumbered Command Papers are made available via the Vote Office.
Sir Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he will reply to the letter of5 May from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire on overpayment of benefits. [78039]
Mr. Plaskitt [holding answer on 16 June 2006]: I replied to the hon. Member on 8 June 2006.
Mrs. Dunwoody: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) how many telephone lines are available in Crewe and Nantwich that are dedicated lines to the North West call centre for crisis loans; how many missed calls were recorded per day on average in the last period for which figures are available; how many complaints have been received about those lines in the last 12 months; and how crisis loans can be accessed if his Department's local office is closed; [83787]
Mr. Jim Murphy: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. I have asked her to provide my hon. Friend with the information requested.
Letter from Lesley Strathie, dated 24 July 2006:
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your questions asking how many telephone lines are available in Crewe and Nantwich that are dedicated lines to the North West call centre for crisis loans; how many missed calls were recorded per day on average in the last period for which figures are available; how many complaints have been received about those lines in the last 12 months; how crisis loans can be accessed if the Department's local office is closed and where the officials answering calls tothe telephone lines dedicated to applicants for crisis loans in the North West are located. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
The Social Fund Unit in Hartford House, Northwich is one of 13 such units in the Jobcentre Plus North West Region, which process applications for Crisis Loans. This unit covers more than one individual site. Customers can apply for a Crisis Loan by telephone (Crisis Loan Direct) or opt for a face-to-face interview.
The Northwich unit administers the Social Fund for the area covered by the Cheshire and Warrington Jobcentre Plus District. Customers within this District are able to access the Crisis Loan team in Northwich by telephone, or by the freephone facility at their local Jobcentre. Nantwich Jobcentre has one telephone programmed for Social Fund customers and Crewe Jobcentre has four. Applications for Crisis Loans for the rest of the North West are processed in the following sites: Mitre House, Lancaster; Marton Mere, Blackpool; Barry House, Preston; Rusholme, Manchester; Graeme House, Chorlton; Park Road, Toxteth; Hordan House, Birkenhead; Edendale House, Huyton; Webster House, Kirkby; Eastbank House, Southport; Gregson House, St Helens; Kingsway House, Widnes; Newgate House, Rochdale; Elizabeth House, Bolton; Beech House, Hyde; and Brun House, Burnley. Overall, there are 110 dedicated telephone lines for Crisis Loans throughout the North West Region.
I regret that I am unable to provide you with reliable data on the numbers of missed calls, as the current telephony system does not record this.
The Northwich team receive an average of sixty-five Crisis Loan applications each day. In the last twelve months a total of fifty-five complaints have been received concerning the difficulties experienced by customers in accessing this service. A number of those complaints followed a period between October and November 2005 during which the telephony system experienced extensive service interruptions and suspensions. Jobcentre Plus is currently investing in an enhanced telephony and IT system, to improve customer service as part of our programme to transform Social Fund delivery.
From April 2008 all Social Fund functions, including Crisis Loan Direct, for customers in our Cheshire and Warrington District will be delivered from a specialist unit in Belle Vale, Liverpool. Until then, Northwich will continue to administer Crisis Loan Direct.
Those customers who need a Crisis Loan when our offices are closed (i.e. outside normal working hours) can access the “Out of Hours Service” (OOHS), by contacting their Local Authority, Social Services or the police. The Pension Service can also make a referral to the OOHS on a weekday night up to 20.00. These contacts have details of the OOHS dedicated telephone numbers.
I am extremely concerned that your constituents have continued to experience difficulties in accessing the Crisis Loan service in Northwich, and can assure you that both my Regional and Local Social Fund Managers are taking action to address these capacity issues. I am confident that, as staff gain greater experience, with the introduction of a number of streamlined processes, and with improvements to the telephone service, we should be able to resolve these problems.
Both Bill Marks, NW Region Benefit Delivery Manager and Angela Keith, NW Region Social Fund Manager, will be more than happy to discuss any further concerns you may have, and I have also asked that they arrange an early meeting with the appropriate Citizens Advice Bureaux.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much was spent on crisis loans for people in each London borough in each of the last five years. [87117]
Mr. Plaskitt: The information requested is not available.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many complaints his Department received from (a) hon. Members, (b) advice agencies and (c) the public in each of the last 24 months. [41822]
Mrs. McGuire: The following annexes provide details of complaints received in DWP in 2004 and 2005.
| Complaints from members of the public and advice agencies | ||||||
| Jobcentre Plus | The Pension Service | Disability and Carers Service( 1) | Child Support Agency( 2) | Appeals Service( 3) | Compensation Recovery Unit | |
| (1)Figures
recorded only on a quarterly
basis (2) Figures are for First Stage of the complaints process, Treat Official and Chief Executive complaints, some of which may come from MPs (3) Until April 2005, the Appeals Service included all complaints in one count (4 )Figures recorded on a quarterly basis until April 2004 (5 )Total (6) Figures could not be retrieved within the required timescale (7) Total (8) Total (9) Total (10) Total (11) Total (12) Total (13) Total (14) Total (15) Total (16)The Appeals Service moved to the Department for Constitutional Affairs in April 2006. n/a=Not yet available. | ||||||
| Complaints from Members of Parliament | ||||||
| Jobcentre Plus | The Pension Service | Disability and Carers Service | Child Support Agency( 1) | Appeals Service( 2) | Compensation Recovery Unit | |
| (1)
Figures are for MP complaints to business units; MP complaints to Chief
Executive are included with other Chief Executive complaints in Annex
1 (2) Until April 2005, the Appeals Service included all complaints in one count (3) Figures could not be retrieved within the required timescale (4) The Appeals Service moved to the Department for Constitutional Affairs in April 2006. | ||||||
| Debt Management | |||
| Source of Complaint | |||
| Customer | MP | 3( rd) Party | |
| Notes: The “3rd party” category includes next of kin, appointees and executors as well as welfare rights organisations. The “Customer” category includes both written and verbal complaints by the customer. The table reflects figures across Debt Management, including the Enforcement Initiative. | |||
The Rent Service has provided figures for the period January 2004 to April 2006.
They received 73 letters of complaint from the public, and one letter of complaint from an MP.
Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what arrangements are made within the Department and its agencies for maintaining in its employment those (a) over 50 years and (b) with a disability in circumstances of (i) a period of sickness absence and (ii) local staff restructuring. [86040]
Mrs. McGuire: The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) does not discriminate on grounds of age. From October 2006 staff below Senior Civil Service grades will no longer have a mandatory retirement age in DWP. This means that once they have reached the minimum pension age of 60, staff themselves decide when to retire.
Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions which voluntary and private sector organisations have been contracted by his Department to deliver (a) disability awareness and (b) other training to Jobcentre Plus staff. [83328]
Mr. Jim Murphy: Voluntary and private sector organisations have been involved with Jobcentre Plus since its inception to design, develop, deliver and quality assure the training provided to their staff.
Mr. Marsden: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households in Lancashire include a person with a learning disability who receives the care component of disability living allowance at the (a) highest, (b) middle and (c) lowest rate. [82756]
Mr. Jim Murphy: The administration of disability living allowance is a matter for the Chief Executive of the Disability and Carers Service, Mr. Terry Moran. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
Letter from Terry Moran, dated 24 July 2006:
You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many households in Lancashire include a person with a learning disability who receives the care component of disability living allowance at the (a) highest (b) middle and (c) lowest rate.
The Minister for Disabled People, Anne McGuire MP, promised you a substantive reply from the Chief Executive of the Disability and Carers Service.
The information available is in the following tables:
| Recipients of disability living allowance with learning difficulties by rate of care award as at November 2005 in Lancashire parliamentary constituencies | ||||
| Care component | ||||
| Total with care component | Highest rate | Middle rate | Lowest rate | |
| Notes: 1. Numbers are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Totals may not sum due to rounding. 3. The parliamentary constituencies are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant postcode directory. 4. Figures are based on the care component condition only. Source: DWP, WPLS 100 per cent. data. | ||||
| Recipients of disability living allowance with learning difficulties by rate of care award as at November 2005 in Lancashire local authorities | ||||
| Care component | ||||
| Total with care component | Highest rate | Middle rate | Lowest rate | |
| Notes: 1. Numbers are rounded to the nearest 10. 2. Totals may not sum due to rounding. 3. The local authorities are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant postcode directory. 4. Figures are based on the care component condition only. Source: DWP, WPLS 100 per cent. data. | ||||
Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many disabled staff within his Department (a) received equipment and adaptations through the Access to Work scheme up to 2003 and (b) receive equipment and adaptations paid for by his Department. [79935]
Mrs. McGuire: Any Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) employee requiring equipment and adaptation support up until March would have received the necessary support with costs attributed to the national Access to Work budget. However, Jobcentre Plus Access to Work did not collect the numbers of departmental disabled staff accessing adaptations and equipment support at that time.
| Quarter ending | Number of reasonable adjustments undertaken |
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will list the draft Bills produced by his Department since October 2005; how many were examined or are planned to be examined by (a) a Departmental Select Committee or a combination of Select Committees and (b) a Joint Committee of both Houses of Parliament; and if he will make a statement. [81656]
Mrs. McGuire: The Department of Work and Pensions has produced no draft Bills since October 2005.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what percentage of families with three or more children were living in poverty in each county in (a) Wales, (b) Scotland, (c) England and (d) Northern Ireland in the most recent year for which figures are available. [87736]
Mr. Jim Murphy: Information below National or Government Office regional level is not available.
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the (a) average, (b) highest and (c) lowest payment has been under the financial assistance scheme to former Allied Steel and Wire workers living (i) in and (ii) outside Wales; and if he will make a statement. [64131]
James Purnell: The financial assistance scheme will provide a qualifying member with assistance that will top-up their scheme pension to a level broadly equivalent to 80 per cent. of their expected pension. Payments are subject to a de minimis level and a cap.
| FAS payments to former Allied Steel and Wire workers living in Wales | |
| Gross (£) | |
Under the Data Protection Act it is inappropriate to reveal such
“data which relate to a living individual who can be identified from those data”.
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much the Financial Assistance scheme has paid out to members of schemes that wound up before 6 April 2005 with insufficient funds to cover all pension entitlements; and if he will make a statement. [89095]
James Purnell: The Financial Assistance scheme has paid a total of £707,121.93 (gross) to members of pension schemes that had completed wind up or were in the winding up process before April 6 2005.
David Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he next plans to review the level of funding for (a) the Financial Assistance Scheme and (b) the Pension Protection Fund. [62312]
James Purnell: Following the recent review, on25 May we announced that we will extend eligibility for the financial assistance scheme (FAS) to members of qualifying pension schemes who were within 15 years of their scheme's normal retirement age on 14 May 2004.
Mark Lazarowicz: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many applications for Fuel Direct for (a) gas and (b) electricity by eligible consumers were approved by his Department but declined by an energy supplier in (i) each region of England, (ii) Scotland and (iii) Wales in the last full year for which figures are available. [84378]
Mr. Plaskitt: The information is not available.
Mr. Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he next plans to increase funeral payments made by the Social Fund. [86730]
Mr. Plaskitt: Funeral Payments from the social fund cover the cost of certain necessary charges in full; these include fees levied by burial authorities and crematoria. An additional sum of up to £700 is allowed for other funeral expenses, which give the person arranging the funeral the freedom to select items or services they consider appropriate.
Mr. Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (1) what plans he has to reduce employment levels at the Government office site at Heyhouses Lane in St. Annes; and which business areas will be affected; [87606]
(3) when he expects to announce the outcome of his Department’s estates review. [87608]
Mrs. McGuire: My Department intends to make an announcement to staff on the position of its non-London Headquarters estate by the end of July.
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many complaints of (a) bullying and (b) sexual harassment have been investigated in the Department in each of the last three years; and how many complaints have been upheld. [63529]
Mrs. McGuire: The Department for Work and Pensions records complaints relating to bullying and sexual harassment that are formally investigated by the Department. The following table contains information about the number of complaints that were formally investigated in the years 2003 to 2005. The figures in the table relate to the Department and all its businesses.
| Bullying | Sexual harassment | |||
| Number of investigations started | Number upheld | Number of investigations started | Number upheld | |
Mr. Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what response he has made to the safety assessment made by the Nuclear Safety Directorate of Hinkley Point B, Somerset of 3 April 2006; and what action he plans to take. [84450]
Mrs. McGuire: None. Accountability for the safety of the civil nuclear industry rests with the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry. Health and Safety Executive’s Nuclear Safety Directorate is the independent nuclear safety regulator and I am satisfied that it will respond appropriately with regard to its own safety assessments.
Mr. Love: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many under 25-year-olds are in receipt of the shared room rate of the local housing allowance in each of the pathfinder areas. [85609]
Mr. Plaskitt: The information is in the following table.
| Under 25-year-olds in receipt of the shared room rate of the local housing allowance in each of the pathfinder areas | |
| Pathfinder area | Number of recipients |
| (1)
A number less than 25. Note: Numbers are
rounded to the nearest 50 and as such components may not sum to
total. Source: Administrative data,
February
2006. | |
Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he will publish the feasibility reports on identity cards following the Information Commissioner's decision reference FS50083103. [84989]
Mr. Plaskitt: The Department has appealed against the Information Commissioner's decision to an Information Tribunal and we await the outcome.
Mr. Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to his answer of 10 July 2006, Official Report, column 1589W, on incapacity benefit, how many claimants sought help from his Department to find work during the period October 2003 to February 2006. [85719]
Mrs. McGuire Information on the number incapacity benefit claimants seeking help from this Department to find work during the period October 2003 to February 2006 is not available. Data are not held on the type of inquiries made by clients.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what measures his Department has taken to help into work those in rural areas receiving incapacity benefits; and if he will make a statement. [85879]
Mr. Jim Murphy: All services that are available to all incapacity benefits claimants are available to clients in both rural and urban areas.
Mr. Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many incapacity benefit claimants there have been in West Suffolk in each year since 2000. [85500]
Mrs. McGuire: The available information is in the following table:
| Incapacity benefit and severe disablement allowance claimants, in the Suffolk West parliamentary constituency: each November 2000 to 2005 | |
| Number of claimants | |
| Notes:
1. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10 2. “Claimant”
figures include all incapacity benefit and severe disablement
allowance, including incapacity benefit credits only cases.
Source: DWP Information Directorate, Work and Pensions
Longitudinal Study 100 per cent.
data. | |
Mr. Boswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what financial savings were achieved by Jobcentre Plus in 2005-06 against budget; and if he will make a statement. [86039]
Mr. Jim Murphy: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. I have asked her to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking what financial savings were achieved by Jobcentre Plus in 2005-06 against budget. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
The financial figures for 2005-06 are currently being audited. The unaudited position for 2005-06 shows an overall saving of £94 million against budget, as set out in the table below.
| £ million | |||
| Budget | Outturn | Saving/(Overspend) | |
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the waiting time is for jobseeker's allowance claims to be processed in (a) the South-West and (b) Somerset from (i) contacting the contact centre and being given an appointment for interview and (ii) interview to receipt of benefit; and if he will make a statement. [63378]
Mr.
Jim Murphy: In June 2006, the average clearance time for
jobseeker’s allowance claims in the south-west region was 17
days, and for Somerset claims was
17 days. The average time taken for the contact centres to return a
customer's call was within the target 48 hours within the region. The
average time between contacting the contact centre and the claim being
taken in the Jobcentre was two
days.
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what special considerations are given to women wearing the veil regarding their suitability for employment when they apply for jobseeker’s allowance; and if he will make a statement. [85016]
Mr. Jim Murphy: There are no special considerations given to a woman’s suitability for employment when wearing a veil or any other specific item of clothing.
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what plans he has to ask the Government Actuary’s Department to make an assessment of the assumptions underlying the projections of (a) public spending and (b) the extent of means testing inCm 6841; and if he will make a statement. [83807]
James Purnell: The assumptions and modelling techniques underpinning the analysis contained in Security in Retirement: towards a new pensions system (Cm 6841) have been developed and refined over a number of years through a process of regular contact and validation with a range of expert organisations. In the past year these have also been scrutinised by the independent Pensions Commission who found them to be broadly comparable with their own analysis.
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people with no recourse to public funds because of their immigration status have national insurance numbers. [84346]
Mr. Plaskitt: The information is not available.
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many new national insurance numbers were issued in the Peterborough city council area in the 12 months to 31 March (a) 2004, (b) 2005 and (c) 2006; and if he will make a statement. [86882]
Mr. Plaskitt: The information is not available in the format requested.
Mr. Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when he was informed that national insurance numbers were being issued to (a) illegal immigrants, (b) immigrants with false papers and (c) immigrants whose visas had expired; when the review into this matter was begun; and if he will make a statement [75917]
Mr. Plaskitt: National insurance numbers (NINOs) are only ever allocated when an individual has proved their identity. Individuals who present false documentation would not be allocated a NINO as we would not be satisfied as to their identity.
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 30 January 2006, Official Report, column 287W, on national insurance numbers, how many national insurance numbers in issue are allocated to (a) deceased people, (b) those in receipt of benefit outside the UK and (c) others who are abroad. [76025]
Mr. Plaskitt: In order to maintain the integrity of the system (and for benefit purposes) national insurance numbers (NINOs) are not removed. For example, they are retained after a person dies or moves abroad. This is because individuals who move abroad may at some point have a call upon contributions paid while in the UK. In the case of deceased individuals, a partner may make a claim for a contributory benefit, which is dependant on the contribution record of the deceased individual.
The information is in the table.
| Allocation of NINOs to deceased people, those in receipt of benefit outside the UK, and others who are abroad | |
| Million | |
NINOs in issue to those in receipt of benefits outside the UK | |
| Note: These figures are from 2003 and relate to the total number of NINOs in issue at the time. | |
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much has been spent on travel passes for young people on the new deal in each year since 1997; how many passes were issued in each year; and if he will make a statement. [85468]
Mr. Jim Murphy: The New Deal Reduced Rail Fare Scheme was established in 1997 and, in England and Wales, is jointly operated by Jobcentre Plus and the Association of Train Operating Companies (ATOC). The scheme was set up to provide new deal participants with reduced travel costs whilst on the New Deal programme.
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much was spent in each year since 1998 on the nationwide network of mentors to advise young people on getting back into work; how many advisers were employed in each year; and how many young people they assisted into work in each year. [85550]
Mr.
Jim Murphy: Mentoring was introduced
into new deal provision to help those people who may need additional
support to that offered by their new deal personal adviser. New deal
mentoring is available at
Jobcentre Plus District Manager's discretion, depending on the needs of
the local labour market, and can supplement and complement new deal
personal adviser support given to new deal
participants.
Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions why he applied for a temporal limitation procedure in relation to the Amicus-Community trade union European Court of Justice occupational pensions case. [78019]
James Purnell [holding answer 16 June 2006]: The Government’s position is that the United Kingdom’s interpretation of article 8 of directive 80/987/EEC is consistent with the text of the directive, the legislative history, the case law of the European Court of Justice and, until recently represented, the view of the European Commission.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many parliamentary questions tabled to his Department were awaiting a reply on10 July 2006; which of those had been waiting longer than (a) two and (b) three weeks for a reply; and what the reason for the delay was in each case. [85209]
Mrs. McGuire: The Department received 4,124 ordinary, named day and Lords parliamentary questions in the 12 month period to 30 June.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer of 5 July 2006, Official Report, column 1171W, on pension credit, why production of the pension credit wallets ceased. [85915]
James Purnell: Production of the pension credit ‘plastic wallets’ ceased because there was sufficient stock to meet likely demand.
Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions whether all pensioners are entitled to have their pension credit paid into a Post Office card account. [86066]
Mr. Plaskitt: Pensioners who satisfy the terms and conditions set by Post Office Ltd. for opening a Post Office card account can have their pension credit payments made this way.
Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many individual beneficiaries of pension credit there were in each ward of Newcastle upon Tyne in November (a) 2003, (b) 2004 and (c) 2005; and what the average weekly payment was in each case. [86859]
James Purnell: The information requested is in the following table.
| Pension credit individual beneficiaries and average weekly payments for wards in Newcastle-upon-Tyne Central | ||||||
| November 2003 | November 2004 | November 2005 | ||||
| Ward name | Individual beneficiaries | Average weekly payments (£) | Individual beneficiaries | Average weekly payments (£) | Individual beneficiaries | Average weekly payments (£) |
| Notes: 1. The number of recipients are rounded to a multiple of five and average payments to the nearest penny therefore ward totals do not always sum to area totals. 2. Wards are based on 2003 ward boundaries. 3. The number of individual beneficiaries includes both claimants and their partners. Source: DWP Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study (WPLS) 100 per cent. data. | ||||||
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the take-up rate of benefits by pensioners was in each year since 1997. [85549]
James Purnell: Take-up of retirement pension cannot be calculated accurately. However, 98 per cent. of pensioner benefit units were in receipt of some state pension in 2004-05. Those not receiving may include pensioners deferring their state pension or misreporting their income when asked.
Information on the take-up of other benefits is not available.
John Penrose: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) sets of regulations and (b) codes of practice under the Pensions Act 2004 due to take effect from 6th April 2006 have not yet been published in final form. [48096]
James Purnell: The information is as follows:
Regulations that came into force on 28 March 2006:
The Occupational Pension Schemes (Cross-Border) Regulations 2006 (amendment).
The Occupational Pension Schemes (Pension Protection Levy and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2006
The Occupational Pension Schemes (Fraud Compensation Levy) Regulations 2006
The Occupational Pension Schemes (Levies) (Amendment) Regulations 2006
The Pension Protection Fund (Valuation of the Pension Protection Fund) Regulations 2006.
The Pension Protection Fund (Administration of Compensation) Regulations 2006
The Pension Protection Fund (Compensation) (Amendment) Regulations 2006
The Pension Protection Fund (Entry Rules) (Amendments) Regulations 2006
The Pension Protection Fund (Assumption of Responsibility, Discharge of Liabilities and Equal Treatment) Regulations 2006
The Pension Protection Fund (Reviewable Matters) and (Review and Reconsideration of Reviewable Matters) (Amendment) Regulations 2006
The Pension Protection Fund (Provision of Information) (Amendment) Regulations 2006
The Occupational Pension Schemes (Member Nominated Trustees and Directors) Regulations 2006
The Occupational Pension Schemes (Modification of Subsisting Rights) Regulations 2006
The Occupational Pension Schemes (Trustees' Knowledge and Understanding) Regulations 2006
The Occupational and Personal Pensions (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2006
The Occupational Pension Schemes (Payments to Employer) Regulations 2006.
Late Payments (Money Purchase)
Late Payments (Personal Pension)
Trustees Knowledge and Understanding
Reasonable Periods in Disclosure
Early Leavers
Member Nominated Trustees/Member Nominated Directors was laid in its final form on 13 July 2006.
The following codes of practice are currently being developed:
Modification of Past Rights
Internal Controls.
Mr.
Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of
State for Work and Pensions if he will estimate the total number of
pensioners who would receive savings credit
under the current system but will not under the proposals in the White
Paper security in retirement, towards a new pensions system in
(a) 2010, (b) 2020, (c) 2030, (d) 2040 and
(e) 2050.
[78004]
James Purnell: Under our reforms, more people will be receiving state pensions based on their national insurance records, and there will be a more generous basic state pension due to the restoration of the earnings link. This provides a solid foundation for private saving. Incentives are further enhanced by reducing the growth of the savings credit.
| Table 1: Projected numbers of pensioner households in selected years that may receive savings credit under the current system projected forward, and that may receive it under the white paper proposals | |||
| Number of pensioner households that may receive savings credit under the current system projected forward (million) | Number of pensioner households that may receive savings credit under the white paper proposals (million) | Difference | |
| Notes: 1. Projections of numbers receiving savings credit in the future are subject to a range of uncertainties and a number of factors including policies on uprating different benefits, and assumptions on rates of take-up. 2. The assumptions applied here are consistent with those that underpin published long-run expenditure projections, and are applied to projections of the number of pensioner households estimated to be eligible for the savings credit. 3. The projections of recipients of the savings credit under the current system and the reform proposals are calculated by applying assumed rates of take-up, care should be taken when interpreting these projections. In particular data deficiencies make it difficult to be confident in the split between the number of people who may be in receipt of only the guarantee credit and those who may be in receipt of both the guarantee credit and the savings credit. Also the projections are sensitive to the assumed take-up rates. 4. Estimates of the proportion of pensioner households eligible to the savings credit are the mid-points of projections taken from two separate micro-simulation models. Modelling of the reform proposals does not assume any increase in private saving from the introduction of personal accounts, which would further reduce the numbers eligible for the savings credit. 5. The projections of the number and proportion of pensioner households eligible for the savings credit are sensitive to modelling assumptions and to projected changes in the distribution of pensioner incomes. 6. The projections of the number of pensioner households eligible for the savings credit are derived from the projected proportions eligible and projections of the number of pensioner households in Great Britain. 7. The reform projections assume: continued earnings uprating of the standard guarantee credit; the savings credit maximum is uprated by earnings from 2008 and then by prices from 2015; earnings uprating of the basic state pension from 2012; measures to improve coverage of the basic state pension described in the White Paper. 8. The projections under the current system assume that basic state pension is uprated in line with prices and the standard guarantee credit with earnings each year. It should be noted that there is a government commitment to uprate the standard guarantee credit with earnings until 2008. Treasury projections for the current system assume price uprating of the standard guarantee credit beyond 2008. 9. Estimates are calibrated to the mid-points of the 2004-05 National Statistics range estimates of non-eligibility to pension credit, which adjust 2004-05 Family Resources Survey data to take account of possible biases in reporting. Although the estimates here are not presented as ranges, they are subject to a margin of uncertainty. 10. The projections are rounded to the nearest 50,000. Totals are rounded separately so components may not sum to totals. | |||
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people were estimated to be living in poverty in (a) rural and (b) non-rural areas in each year since 1997; and what each figure represents per 1,000 population. [85942]
Mr. Jim Murphy: The following table shows the number of all individuals living in households which are situated in either rural or urban areas of England and with household incomes below the 60 per cent. threshold of the contemporary median. The threshold of 60 per cent. of median household income is the most commonly used in reporting trends in low income. The figures are on a before and after housing costs basis for the years 1996-97 to 2004-05. The urban/rural marker information is not available on a consistent basis on the data for Scotland and Wales.
| Number of all individuals falling below 60 per cent. of the contemporary median income, by urban/rural: England, 1997-98 to 2004-05 | ||||||
| Before housing costs | After housing costs | Total number of all individuals (million) | ||||
| Urban | Rural | Urban | Rural | Urban | Rural | |
| (1
)Total (2) Total (3) Total (4 )Total (5) Total (6) Total (7) Total (8) Total Source: Households Below Average Income (HBAI). The main source for HBAI is the Family Resources Survey (FRS). | ||||||
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of (a) adults and (b) children were living in poverty in (i) England, (ii) Peterborough constituency and (iii) the Peterborough city council in each year since 1997. [85971]
Mr. Jim Murphy: Specific information regarding low income for Great Britain is detailed in "Households Below Average Income (HBAI) 1994-95 to 2004-05", which is available in the Library. The main source for HBAI is the Family Resources Survey (FRS).
| Percentage of adults living in households with less than 60 per cent. of contemporary median household income, years 1995-96 to 2004-05; England | ||
| Before housing costs | After housing costs | |
| Note: Figures are provided using a three-year moving averages, as single-year estimates do not provide a robust guide to year on year changes. Hence, figures are not consistent with previously published single-year estimates and there may be differences in changes over time. Source: FRS | ||
| Percentage of children living in households with less than 60 per cent. of contemporary median household income, years 1995-96 to 2004-05; England | ||
| Before housing costs | After housing costs | |
| Note: Figures are provided using a three-year moving averages, as single-year estimates do not provide a robust guide to year on year changes. Hence, figures are not consistent with previously published single-year estimates and there may be differences in changes over time. Source: FRS | ||
Mr. Love: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate he has made of the number of workers who suffered from occupational exposure to (a) methyl bromide and (b) sulphuric acid in the latest year for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [85606]
Mrs. McGuire: Available information via reports to HSE under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) in 2004-05 revealed 19 injuries to workers where reports mentioned the term “sulphuric acid” but no injuries mentioning “methyl bromide”. Of these injuries, 13 were recorded as burns and four as asphyxiations or poisonings. This information from RIDDOR is limited by significant under-reporting of relevant cases to HSE and local authorities.
| THOR 2000 onwards: cases of injury and illness attributed to sulphuric acid and methyl bromide | ||
| Agent | Illness or injury | Number of reported cases |
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what measures his Department has taken to tackle short-term seasonal unemployment in rural areas; and if he will make a statement. [85922]
Mr. Jim Murphy: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave him on 10 July 2006, Official Report, column 1609W.
Gregory Barker: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how much the Government plan to spend on promoting stakeholder pensions in the next five years; and if he will make a statement. [86259]
James Purnell: We will continue to provide public information in order to help individuals make informed choices about saving for a pension, including information about stakeholder pensions.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on what occasions a statutory instrument sponsored by his Department has been reported by the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments as defective since October 2005. [85191]
Mrs. McGuire: On three occasions in the Committee's fourth, twenty-second and twenty-fifth reports.
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many women in (a) England, (b) the Tees Valley and (c) Middlesbrough, South and East Cleveland have received the Sure Start maternity grant since 2001. [87971]
Mr. Plaskitt: The information is not available in the format requested. Such information as is available is in the tables.
| Sure Start maternity grants for England | |
| Number of awards | |
| Sure Start maternity grants for Tees Social Fund District | |
| Number of awards | |
| Sure Start maternity grants for area covered by Tees Valley Jobcentre Plus District | |
| Number of awards | |
| Notes: 1. Data is not available by parliamentary constituency but only by Jobcentre Plus District, and, before Jobcentre Plus Districts were used for the administration of the social fund, by social fund district. 2. Middlesbrough, South and East Cleveland parliamentary constituency used to be part of Tees social fund district and is now part of Tees Valley Jobcentre Plus District. The latter was formed in November 2002 by merging part of Durham social fund district with Tees social fund district. Thus data in the third table is not comparable with that in the second table. 3. Figures are for all awards, irrespective of whether the award was made to the mother or her partner. 4. Some women will have received more than one sure start maternity grant since 2001-02. 5. Figures have been rounded to the nearest 10. Source: DWP Social Fund Policy, Budget and Management Information System | |
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people he estimates are not claiming benefits to which they are entitled, broken down by (a) age, (b) sex and (c) region; what his estimate is of the total sum involved; and what steps he is taking to reduce that number. [87318]
Mr. Plaskitt: Information is not available broken down below national level. For the available information I refer the hon. Member to the written answer I gave my right hon. Friend the Member for North Tyneside (Mr. Byers) on 3 March 2006, Official Report, column 1034W.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what publications have been provided by civil servants as background reading for his ministerial duties since taking office; and if he will make a statement. [87590]
The Deputy Prime Minister: I am provided with the publications necessary to enable me to fulfil my ministerial duties.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister whether the Anschutz Entertainment Group is a casino developer. [86964]
The Deputy Prime Minister: On the company’s website, AEG are described as “sports and entertainment presenters.”
Anne Main: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what role he has in relation to Government policy on (a) gambling and (b) planning. [84719]
The Deputy Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Surrey Heath (Michael Gove) on 19 July 2006, Official Report, column 302.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what meetings he has had in the last five years with (a) Margaret Hotchkiss, (b) John Allison, (c) Tobin Prior and (d) Howard Kerzner. [85548]
The Deputy Prime Minister: The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister was created in June 2002. Information prior to this time is not available. Since that time, I have not had any meetings with the persons named.
Mr. Atkinson: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister pursuant to the answer of 3 July 2006, Official Report, columns 788-89W, on his ministerial office and staff, how many members of staff have (a) resigned, (b) been made redundant and (c) been dismissed from his private office since May. [85058]
The Deputy Prime Minister [holding answer 13 July 2006]: None.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister how many times his ministerial office has been decorated in each of the last five years. [87651]
The Deputy Prime Minister: My office in 26 Whitehall has not been decorated since I moved into it in September 2002.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what responsibilities he has in relation to the implementation of Government policy on (a) the international slave trade and (b) the commemoration of the abolition of slavery. [85559]
The Deputy Prime Minister: I do not have any responsibility for the implementation of policy in relation to the international slave trade. However, the hon. Member may be aware that I chair the 2007 Bicentenary Advisory Group, which brings together stakeholders from across the cultural, faith and community sectors to discuss how best we can maximise their organisations’ contributions to the bicentenary.
David Simpson: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister on how many occasions he has visited each region in an official capacity in the last 12 months. [83976]
The Deputy Prime Minister: The number of visits I have made to each of the English regions in the past 12 months is shown in the table.
| Number of visits | |
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what recent discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the disposal of nuclear waste; and if he will make a statement. [87085]
The Deputy Prime Minister: I have regular discussions with ministerial colleagues on a wide range of subjects. Information relating to such discussions, including Cabinet and its committees, is generally not disclosed, as to do so could harm the frankness and candour of internal discussion.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister for what purpose he visited the Star City Casino in Sydney on 28 November 2004. [85696]
The Deputy Prime Minister: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for Hammersmith and Fulham (Mr. Hands) on 19 July 2006, Official Report, column 301W.
Mr. Hollobone: To ask the Deputy Prime Minister what role he has in relation to Government policy on planning. [87138]
The Deputy Prime Minister: Responsibility for planning policy rests with the Department for Communities and Local Government.
Mr. Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland when he expects the Northern Ireland Charities Commissioners office to be fully functional. [87127]
Mr. Hanson: On 17 July I launched a public consultation about proposed new Northern Ireland charities legislation which will, inter alia, set up a Charity Commission for Northern Ireland. The 12 week consultation process will close on 13 October 2006. Following this the responses will be considered and where feasible account will be taken of these but we must ensure that we put in place adequate regulation and governance arrangements.
to have legislation approved early in 2007;
to enable the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland to be established by mid-2007;and
to enable the Northern Ireland Register of Charities to reach initial operational capability by end-2007.
Dr. Alasdair McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether his Department plans to extend the Department for Regional Development's concessionary fares scheme for pupils returning to school in the sixth form. [86571]
David Cairns: The Northern Ireland concessionary fares scheme currently provides half fare travel on public transport for all children up to the 30 June after they become 16, that is, until the end of their period of compulsory attendance at school. On 26 June 2006, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland launched a review of the scheme. This review will consider the feasibility and desirability of options for extending the provision of concessionary travel to additional categories, such as pupils returning to school in the 6th form.
Mrs.
Villiers: To ask the Secretary of State for
Northern Ireland how much his Department has spent on IT systems in
each year since 1997; what the purpose of each system is; what the
outturn against
planned expenditure of each system was; and what the outturn time for
implementation against planned time was.
[41314]
Paul Goggins: The following table gives information on IT projects costing in excess of £1 million within the Northern Ireland Office Core, its agencies, the Bloody Sunday Inquiry and the Northern Ireland legal offices (Director of Public Prosecutions and Crown Solicitors Office).
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many (a) EU foreign nationals and (b) non-EU foreign nationals have been employed in (i) each department in Northern Ireland and (ii) the Northern Ireland Office in each of the last five years; what vetting procedures are in place for each category of staff; and whether this includes liaison with foreign law enforcement agencies. [68005]
Mr. Hanson: Recruitment Service of the Department of Finance and Personnel has responsibility for providing a vetting service for all employees appointed to the Northern Ireland Civil Service (NICS).
| Financial Year | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |||||
| Classification | EU | Non-EU | EU | Non-EU | EU | Non-EU | EU | Non-EU | EU | Non-EU |
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate he has made of the simulated average effective tax rate that would notionally have been levied on domestic rates bills in respect of the (a) district and (b) regional rate in (i) Northern Ireland as a whole and (ii) each district in Northern Ireland in 2006-07. [86816]
Mr. Hanson: The simulated average district rate for 2006-07 is 0.00258 or £2.58 per £1,000 of capital value, while the regional rate is simulated to be 0.00340 or £3.40 per £,000 of capital value. This gives an overall average rate of 0.00598 or £5.98 per £1,000 of capital value. This estimate simulates what domestic rates would have been in 2006-07 had capital values been in place. Individual district rates are shown in the table.
| Simulation of domestic capital value rates for 2006-07 | ||||
| District rate (pence) | Regional rate (pence) | Total rate (pence) | Total rate per £1,000 of CV | |
| Notes:
1. Based on VLA domestic revaluation data at 26 May 2006. 2.
Missing or zero capital values are omitted. 3. Rates based on
2006-07 rate revenues. 4. Simulates what domestic rates would
have been in 2006-07 had capital values been in place. 5. For
example, the average bill for a domestic property valued at
£112,000 would be: 112,000 x 0.00598 =
£669.80. | ||||
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the latest estimate is of the average domestic rates bill per dwelling that will be paid in 2007-08 in (a) Northern Ireland as a whole and (b) each district in Northern Ireland. [86819]
Mr. Hanson: The average rate bill for domestic properties in Northern Ireland in 2007-08 is estimated at £705. This figure takes into account the planned 6 per cent. increase in the regional rate between 2006-07 and 2007-08, but also assumes that the district rate set by councils will also increase by an average of 6 per cent. during this time.
| Average domestic rate bills (projected) 2007-08 | |
| £ | |
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the average domestic rates bill per dwelling was in (a) Northern Ireland as a whole and (b) each district in Northern Ireland in 2006-07. [86820]
Mr. Hanson: The average domestic rate liability for properties in Northern Ireland in 2006-07, combining both regional and district rates, is estimated at £668.
The following table provides the information for each district council in Northern Ireland.
| Average domestic rate liability 2006-07 (£) | |
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the latest estimate is of the net revenue to be raised from domestic rates in (a) 2006-07 and (b) 2007-08. [86821]
Mr. Hanson: Domestic rates consists of two elements, the Regional Rate, set by the Secretary of State on a uniform basis across Northern Ireland, and the district rate, set separately by each district council relevant to the location of the property The current estimates of total revenue to be raised from domestic rates in 2006-07 and 2007-08 are detailed in the table as follows.
| Total estimated domestic rate revenue | ||
| £ million | ||
| ( 1) Regional rate | ( 2) District rate | |
| (1)
Based on domestic Regional Rate increases of 19 per cent. in 2006-07
and 6 per cent. in 2007-08 as set out in Northern Ireland Priorities
and Budget
2006-08. (2) District councils set their rate in February of the preceding year so figure for 2007-08 not yet available. | ||
These estimates will be subject to revision as information is updated.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the expected change in the regional domestic rate levy is for 2007-08; and what the change was in (a) 2006-07 and (b) 2005-06. [86844]
Mr. Hanson: The expected change in the regional domestic rate levy for 2007-08 is £21.2 million. The estimated changes in (a) 2006-07 and (b) 2005-06 are £42.1 million and £26.3 million respectively.
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the average length of time a person waited to sit a driving test at each test centre in Northern Ireland was in the last period for which figures are available. [86301]
David Cairns: Average waiting times for practical driving tests during week ending 15 July 2006 for each test centre are shown in the following table.
| Test centre | Average waiting time (weeks) |
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people have sat and (a) failed their first driving test and (b) passed first time at each centre in Northern Ireland in the last three years. [86302]
David Cairns: Information on the number of individual candidates involved is not available. However, details of the number of tests conducted in the period 1 April 2003 to 31 March 2006 are as follows.
| Number | |||
| Centre | Tests conducted | Failed first test | Passed first test |
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people have been charged with the intention to supply (a) cannabis, (b) cocaine, (c) crack cocaine and (d) other drugs in the Province in the last three years, broken down by Westminster constituency. [86296]
Paul Goggins: The information requested is provided as follows. The Police Service of Northern Ireland collates information according to district command unit and cannot supply information broken down by Westminster constituency.
| Persons charged for intent to supply: | |||||||||
| (a) Cannabis | (b) Cocaine | (c) Crack cocaine | |||||||
| DCU | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 |
| (1)
(c) One person was charged with intent to supply crack cocaine in
Antrim DCU in 2003-04. (2) As one person can be
charged for supply of several different drug types, the total number of
persons charged with intent to supply cannot be derived by adding the
totals for cannabis, cocaine and others together.
Note: Please note other includes Amphetamine,
Steroids, Benzodiazepines, Heroin, LSD, MDMA (Ecstasy), Methadone,
Morphine, Psilocin (Magic Mushrooms) and Stanozolol. Should a person be
charged with intent to supply more than one of these drug types, they
are only included
once. | |||||||||
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether his Department (a) is committed to the achievement of environmental management to ISO 14001 standard and (b) has been externally certified as in compliance with that standard; and if he will make a statement. [81188]
David Cairns: The Northern Ireland Sustainable Development Strategy, published on 9 May 2006 identifies the implementation of environmental management systems as a mechanism that will reinforce progress made, and being made, in the improvement of the sustainable development profile of the Northern Ireland Government Estate.
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what action he plans to take to promote the welfare of greyhounds in the Province. [87994]
David Cairns: Under the Welfare of Animals Act (Northern Ireland) 1972, all animals are protected from unnecessary cruelty or suffering, although there are no specific provisions on the welfare of racing greyhounds.
Dr. Alasdair McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the range and nature is of language support services available to (a) primary and (b) secondary schools in Northern Ireland; and how much was available for language support services in each Education and Library Board area in each of the last four academic years. [86564]
Maria Eagle: The Education and Library Boards (ELBs) are responsible for ensuring that appropriate support arrangements are in place for children who have significant difficulty with English as an additional language (EAL). The range and nature of language support services available to both primary and secondary schools varies within each ELB area. Some ELBs provide peripatetic teaching staff, some offer schools the opportunity to “buy in” peripatetic services, whilst others provide support through advisers. In addition, some Boards make available interpreting services in certain languages.
| Allocation | ||||
| £ | ||||
| Board | 2003-04 | 2004-05 (Allocated gradually) | 2005-06 | 2006-07 |
| Allocations to schools | ||||
| £ | ||||
| 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | |
| (1
)BELB were the only funding authority to distribute resources to
schools from an EAL factor within its Local Management Schools formula,
prior to the introduction of Common Funding from
2005-06. | ||||
Mr. Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the remuneration is for the chief executives of local councils in Northern Ireland; and what remuneration is proposed for the new chief executive posts. [86946]
David Cairns: The remuneration for chief executives of district councils is negotiated by the Joint Negotiating Committee for Chief Executives Northern Ireland. Currently their salary scales range from £64,185 to £109,503, however, actual salary costs are not held centrally. The issue of remuneration for the new local government chief executive posts will be considered as part of the process of implementing the Review of Public Administration.
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many recently qualified teachers in Northern Ireland have failed to gain a post one year after qualifying; and if he will make a statement. [86309]
Maria Eagle: Destination of Leavers from higher education data are collected by HESA six months after graduation but not thereafter, therefore no data are available one year after graduation. Of the 704 teachers who qualified from Northern Ireland higher education institutions in 2004-05 and had Destination of Leavers data returned to HESA, 104 had not gained a teaching professional post six months after graduation.
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what barriers he has identified to effective out-of-classroom education in secondary schools in Northern Ireland; and what steps he is taking to overcome them. [86917]
Maria Eagle: The Department of Education has not carried out any formal assessment of the barriers to effective out-of-classroom education in secondary schools in Northern Ireland. Delivery of the curriculum, including out-of-classroom learning, is a matter for schools to determine, with the support of the Education and Library Boards.
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) if he will issue guidance on out-of classroom education as part of the Northern Ireland secondary school curriculum; [86918]
Maria Eagle: The Department of Education specifies the minimum curricular content that schools are required to provide but does not specify how the curriculum should be delivered. It is therefore a matter for schools, with the support of the Education and Library Boards, to determine what out-of-classroom learning opportunities they provide. As part of the Northern Ireland Sustainable Development Strategy, Government have already committed to promoting the use of the Education and Library Boards’ “Education for Sustainable Development Good Practice Guide” in all schools. This guide includes information on education outside the classroom.
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what discussions his Department has had with the Education and Library Board chief executives to promote outdoor learning in secondary schools in Northern Ireland. [86919]
Maria Eagle: There have been no meetings between the Department and the chief executives of the education and library boards, specifically, to discuss the promotion of outdoor learning.
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many children are awaiting an initial paediatric cardiology assessment in the Province. [74628]
Paul Goggins [pursuant to the reply, 6 June 2006, Official Report c. 559W]: I am now in a position to provide the information requested.
| Health and Social Service Trust | Number of Children waiting for an initial outpatient paediatric cardiology appointment at 26 May 2006 |
| (1)
Altnagelvin Group and Craigavon Group trusts provided numbers waiting
at 30 April 2006. (2) Subsequent to when this answer
was initially prepared, Ulster Community and Hospitals Trust provided
numbers waiting at31 May 2006.
Source: Health and Social Services
Trusts | |
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland which bodies each Department in Northern Ireland, including the Northern Ireland Office, consults (a) formally and (b) informally on parliamentary (i) questions and (ii) draft answers on Northern Ireland matters tabled by hon. Members from (A) Northern Ireland and (B) constituencies in Great Britain. [88253]
Mr. Hain: When drafting responses to parliamentary questions, my officials contact whichever bodies are necessary to provide the correct information. These bodies range from government agencies, non-departmental public bodies and other Whitehall departments to outside organisations in receipt of public funds. These contacts can be on a formal or informal basis. Where appropriate, I will ask those bodies with operational autonomy to write to hon. Members in response to parliamentary questions. Apart from those instances, all answers to hon. Member’s questions are cleared at ministerial level.
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what percentage of pensioners’ homes did not meet the Decent Homes Standard in the last period for which figures are available. [87286]
Mr. Hanson: The information is not available. The Decent Homes Standard applies only to social housing. The Interim House Condition Survey identified 32,000 homes as failing to meet the Standard but did not disaggregate the figures into particular age categories.
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate he has made of the number of pensioners in Northern Ireland who have home internet access. [87290]
Mr. Hanson: While it is currently not possible to specify the exact number of pensioners in Northern Ireland who have home internet access, the most recent NISRA Omnibus Survey (March 2006) indicates that some 11 per cent. of respondents aged 65 and over in Northern Ireland claim to access the internet from home. This rises to 14 per cent. who regularly make use of the internet and 24 per cent. who have access to an internet-enabled PC.
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what estimate he has made of the average amount pensioners in Northern Ireland spend on (a) food and non-alcoholic drink, (b) electricity and (c) fuel each week. [87292]
Mr. Hanson: Average weekly expenditure for pensioner households in Northern Ireland on the following commodities/services are as follows:
| Expenditure (£) | |
| Source:
Northern Ireland Expenditure and Food Survey (EPS)
2004-05. | |
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many and what percentage of pensioner households in each parliamentary constituency in Northern Ireland are classified as fuel poor. [87293]
Mr. Hanson: The 2004 Interim House Condition Survey collected fuel poverty information on a Northern Ireland wide basis. Due to the small sample size it is not possible to break down the information into parliamentary constituency or district council area. The Survey did, however, indicate that 54 per cent. (82,310) of fuel poor households are headed by someone aged 60 or over.
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what percentage of pensioners in Northern Ireland did not take up their eligibility to (a) pension credit and (b) housing benefit in each of the last five years; and what steps he is taking to ensure pensioners are informed of their benefit entitlements. [87294]
Mr. Hanson: It is not possible to provide estimates of pensioners in Northern Ireland who did not take up their eligibility to pension credit and housing benefit.
All new PC claimants are now also invited to apply for HB when making their claim for PC.
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to his answer of 17 July 2006, Official Report, column 18W, on police, whether the cheque written by the Northern Ireland Police Fund to L’Estrange and Brett Solicitors was queried by his Department (a) as part of a financial return to his Department and (b) at the end of the financial year in question. [87743]
Paul Goggins: The Department has not queried any details contained in either financial returns or end of year financial reports received from the Northern Ireland Police Fund for the financial year in question.
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many resignations of senior police officers in each district command unit have occurred in the last two years; and if he will make a statement. [86300]
Paul Goggins: The total number of senior PSNI officers (inspector rank and above) that have resigned from the service within the period 1 July 2004 to 30 June 2006 is three. This figure includes one chief inspector from Newtownabbey DCU and two inspectors—one from Lisburn DCU and one from Magherafelt.
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to his answer of 17 July 2006, Official Report, column 20W, on police, when it was decided to replace staff recruited externally with Northern Ireland Office (NIO) staff in the Northern Ireland Police Fund; who made the decision to replace staff recruited externally with NIO staff in the Northern Ireland Police Fund; and for what reason it was decided to replace staff recruited externally with NIO staff in the Northern Ireland Police Fund. [87684]
Paul Goggins: Recruitment of staff to the Northern Ireland Police Fund is a matter for the fund.
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many fatalities have occurred on railway lines in Northern Ireland in the last three years; what action has been taken (a) to secure access to train lines and (b) to improve safety at level crossings; and if he will make a statement. [86304]
David Cairns: Translink have advised that there have been six fatalities on the railway lines in Northern Ireland over the last three years.
Mr. Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what initiatives are in place to promote recycling awareness in primary schools in Northern Ireland. [87130]
David Cairns: Significant progress has been made across all sectors to integrate resource and waste management into the teaching curriculum for Northern Ireland primary schools.
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland pursuant to his answer of 17 July 2006, Official Report, column 22W, on redundancy, if the redundancy terms granted to employees of the Northern Ireland Police Fund who were laid off were (a) forwarded to the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) and (b) approved by the NIO in advance of their being agreed with staff. [87683]
Paul Goggins: Redundancy terms for staff employed by the Northern Ireland Police Fund are matters for the fund.
Sammy Wilson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will list the registered charities in Northern Ireland. [87538]
Mr.
Hanson: At present, charities in Northern Ireland are not
registered. On 17 July 2006 I launched a
public consultation about proposed new Northern Ireland charities
legislation which will, inter alia, create a Northern Ireland Register
of Charities and require all charities operating in Northern Ireland to
register.
Mr. Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland if he will introduce a medal to mark the bravery and service of Royal National Lifeboat Institution volunteers on the seas around Northern Ireland. [65092]
Mr. Hain: Her Majesty The Queen is advised by the Committee on the grant of honours, decorations and medals on all matters to do with honours and medals. My department has no plans to recommend the introduction of such a medal to the Committee.
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many deaths occurred on Northern Ireland’s roads involving (a) cyclists and (b) motorbike riders and pillion passengers over the last three years, broken down by Westminster constituency. [86320]
Paul Goggins: The information requested is provided as follows. The Police Service of Northern Ireland collates information according to district command unit and cannot supply information broken down by Westminster constituency.
| Number of motorcycle, pedal cycle and pillion passenger fatalities, 2003 to 2005 | |||||||||
| 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | |||||||
| DCU | Pillion | Motor cyclist | Pedal cyclist | Pillion | Motor cyclist | Pedal cyclist | Pillion | Motor cyclist | Pedal cyclist |
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many unfilled vacancies there are for science teachers in secondary schools within each education and library board. [86921]
Maria Eagle: Since vacancies are identified by boards of governors in accordance with the staffing complement they determine under LMS, the information is not currently held by the Department of Education nor by the relevant employing authorities, and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what the risk assessment system is for secondary school trips in Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement. [86922]
Maria Eagle: The Department advises schools to carry out a risk assessment when they are planning trips. In 2002 the Department issued comprehensive guidance to schools entitled “Health and Safety of Pupils on Educational Visits”, which was published by the then Department for Education and Employment (DfEE). The Education and Library Boards provided their own guidance to schools in 2004. Both sets of guidance provide advice on carrying out risk assessment, including evaluating potential risks, putting control measures or mitigations in place and informing all relevant people.
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what percentage of schools in Northern Ireland provided two hours of sports participation for pupils in the last period for which figures are available. [85440]
Maria Eagle: The Department of Education does not collect information on the amount of time schools allocate to any area within the curriculum, therefore the information requested is not available. It is a matter for individual schools to determine how much time they allocate to any subject but the Department has advised schools to provide at least two hours of physical education, including sport, each week.
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what steps he is taking to ensure newly-built public buildings in Northern Ireland incorporate energy efficient measures. [80950]
Mr. Hanson: A number of steps are being taken to ensure newly built public buildings in NI use energy efficient measures. These are:
(i) A revision to the NI Building Regulations will apply from the end of November 2006. This will mean an improvement of around 40 per cent. on current energy standards.
(ii) The Achieving Excellence Agenda for Construction. Under this agenda, a Policy Framework for Construction Procurement has been developed and implemented. The policy framework requires that, for all new Government buildings, energy efficiency measures over and above those required by the building regulations should be considered. These measures include low carbon design, energy targets, whole life costing and energy efficiency and management. In addition all new Government buildings should minimise energy used in construction and should aim to achieve a rating of Excellent using the Building Research Establishment Environment Assessment Method (BREEAM).
Dr. Alasdair McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what strategies his Department has in place to (a) combat racism and (b) promote tolerance between different ethnic groups within Northern Ireland. [86551]
Mr. Hanson: The Government's Racial Equality Strategy for Northern Ireland and A Shared Future (Policy and Strategic Framework for Good Relations in Northern Ireland) provides the framework for Government and wider civic society to combat racism and sectarianism and to promote good relations. Both are supported by action plans which set out the practical steps to be taken by Government Departments and their agencies to promote racial equality and good relations.
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many tourists he expects to come to Northern Ireland in 2006; and how many came in each of the last three years. [86322]
Maria Eagle: The Northern Ireland Tourist Board's (NITB) Tourism Barometer implemented in June indicates a good 2006 performance to date by all tourism business sectors and a positive outlook for the summer period. Accommodation occupancy surveys also support evidence of a positive start to the year. 2006 visitor number forecasts for full year are not yet available. The table indicates the number of visitors in the last three years.
| Visitor Performance, 2003-05 | |
| Number | |
Dr. Alasdair McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many untaxed vehicles are estimated to be on Northern Ireland's roads. [86578]
David Cairns: A nationwide Vehicle Excise Duty Evasion Survey was undertaken by the Department for Transport during June 2005. The results showed that the vehicle excise evasion rate in traffic in Northern Ireland had fallen from 7.2 per cent. in the 2004 survey to 5.4 per cent. in 2005.
Dr. Alasdair McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many untaxed cars have been removed from the roads in Northern Ireland in each of the last five years. [86583]
David Cairns: The number of untaxed vehicles clamped/seized from the roads in Northern Ireland in each of the last five operational years is:
| Number | |
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many vocational training places are available in Northern Ireland for 16 year olds; and how many places were filled in 2004-05. [85442]
Maria Eagle: The Jobskills programme provides the guarantee of a training place for all 16 and 17-year-old school leavers wishing to avail of the opportunity for vocational training. It is not possible to split the data between 16 and 17-year-olds, however, in the 2004-05 financial year, 6,985 16 and 17-year-olds commenced the Jobskills programme.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (1) what average water tax (a) lump sum figure and (b) capital value levy will be charged on domestic households in (i) Northern Ireland as a whole and (ii) each district in Northern Ireland in 2007-08; [86814]
David Cairns: The currently available capital value data enable information to be provided on the estimated average unmeasured bills for properties throughout Northern Ireland and within each local government district. The variable charge element of the bill is based on property capital value.
| Estimated average unmeasured bills for Northern Ireland domestic properties, 2007-08 | |||||||
| Water charge | Sewerage charge | ||||||
| Standing | Average variable | Total water | Standing | Average variable | Total sewerage | Overall total water and sewerage charges | |
| Note:
Totals might not add up due to
rounding. | |||||||
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what income has been received from the release of sections of the Online 1901 Census in the last 12 months; and if she will make a statement. [86284]
Vera Baird: The National Archives has not released sections of the 1901 Census in the last 12 months.
The whole of the 1901 Census was released to the public in January 2002.
Annette Brooke: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what average time was taken to obtain a court date from the time of application for an adoption placement order in (a) London and (b) other parts of England in the latest period for which figures are available. [87149]
Ms Harman: The average time taken to obtain a court date from the time of application in adoption cases over the last two financial years is as follows:
| (a) London | |
| Weeks | |
| (b) Nationally | |
| Weeks | |
Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what steps she is taking to reduce delays in the coroners’ service. [84516]
Ms Harman: There are measures in the draft Coroners Bill which will assist coroners to operate more effectively, in particular the appointment of a Chief Coroner to provide national leadership and to introduce national standards, including on the timely hearing of inquests. The Chief Coroner will have oversight of the workload of coroners and, subject to the views of relatives and other interested parties and taking account of the requirements of the new coroners charter for bereaved people, he or she will be able to reallocate cases to reduce the length of time it takes for an investigation to be completed. The Chief Coroner will make an annual report to the Lord Chancellor on the performance of the coroner system and, in turn, the Lord Chancellor will ensure the report is laid before Parliament. A Coronial Advisory Council will also be appointed to provide advice, and make recommendations, to the Chief Coroner and Lord Chancellor on any matters relating to the operation of the coroner system.
Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what mechanisms are available to members of the public to make complaints about coroners. [84576]
Ms Harman: In the event that a complainant is unable to resolve the matter with the coroner, a complaint about the personal conduct of a coroner can be made to the Office for Judicial Complaints. Coroners were brought into the remit of the disciplinary provisions of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005 on 3 April 2006. Regulations made under the Act, entitled “Judicial Discipline (Prescribed Procedures) Regulations 2006”, set out the responsibilities of the Lord Chancellor and Lord Chief Justice, and the Office for Judicial Complaints, with regard to the handling of complaints and the discipline of judicial office holders. Further information is available on the website of the Office for Judicial Complaints, at www.judicialcomplaints.gov.uk.
Mark Williams: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs when she expects to reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Ceredigion of 14 March 2006 to the former Foreign Secretary, regarding Mr. Toby Glaister. [86348]
Ms Harman: The right hon. the Baroness Ashton of Upholland wrote to the hon. Member on 28 April 2006 in response to his letter of 14 March 2006 to the Foreign Secretary. I apologise that the letter of 28 April omitted to say that the letter of 14 March was transferred to my Department for reply.
Mr. Chope: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs (1) what the budget for 2006-07 is for the Courts Service in (a) Dorset, (b) Gloucestershire and (c) Wiltshire; and what changes will be made to the budget as a result of the restructuring in October; [87480]
Ms
Harman: The budget allocation for FY
2006-07 is: Dorset—£7.647 million;
Gloucestershire—£5.644 million; and
Wiltshire—£6.620 million. Re-structuring will not be
completed until 31 March 2007 and no changes will be made to the
FY2006-07 budget allocations for these three areas as a result of the
re-structuring exercise. The appropriate budget allocation for the new
amalgamated
Dorset, Gloucestershire and Wiltshire area will be determined in due
course as part of the annual financial planning
cycle.
David Simpson: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what percentage of the staff in her Department is (a) male, (b) female and (c) disabled, broken down by grade. [69032]
Ms Harman: The statistics requested are as at 31 December 2005 in the following tables. Declaration of a disability is voluntary and the statistics are therefore based on the number of respondents to a confidential questionnaire, which all staff are asked to complete, and not total staff.
| Table 1: DCA gender/disability broken down by grade (excluding magistrates courts) | |||
| Percentage | |||
| Government grade | Female | Male | Declared disability |
| Table 2: Magistrates courts gender/disability, all grades | |||
| Percentage | |||
| Government grade | Female | Male | Declared disability |
Mr. Heald: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what steps she is taking to ensure the long-term preservation of documents held in digital form. [88290]
Ms Harman: The National Archives is working with the Government’s Chief Technical Officers (CTO) Council to address the problem of the survival of electronic records with a mid and long-term value across Government.
a Digital Archive facility, in which it preserves a wide range of electronic records transferred by Government departments;
a Web Archiving Programme to preserve government websites of long-term value;
the National Digital Archive of Datasets to preserve historically significant datasets created over the past thirty years.
Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs pursuant to her answer of 26 June 2006, Official Report, column 304W, on Dr. David Kelly, if she will list the occasions since 1 January 2003 when (a) the Lord Chancellor and (b) (i) Ministers and (ii) officials from her Department have met (A) the Deputy Coroner of Oxfordshire, (B) the Assistant Deputy Coroner of Oxfordshire and (C) anyone else responsible to the Oxfordshire Coroner. [83773]
Ms Harman: There has been one meeting between my officials and one of the newly appointed assistant deputy coroners of the Oxfordshire jurisdiction to discuss progress on the inquests into those who have died in the Iraq conflict.
John McDonnell: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs on how many occasions during 2005-06 parents involved in cases in the Family Court were informed of a delay to the reports required by the court. [86963]
Ms Harman: The information requested is not collected.
Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs (1) what recent discussions she has had with the judiciary about the openness of family courts; [84554]
(2) when she last met the President of the Family Division. [84556]
Ms Harman: Since being appointed as Minister for Family Justice, I have discussed openness of the family courts with a wide range of stakeholders. Members of the judiciary included:
Sir Mark Potter, President, and Lord Justice Thorpe;
Mr. Justice Ryder;
Mrs. Justice Black and Mr. Justice McFarlane;
District Judge (Magistrates Courts) Crichton; and
Margaret Wilson JP.
I last met the President of the Family Division on3 July 2006.
Mr. Heald: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what guidance she has issued to freedom of information officers to assist them in recognising the circumstances in which they should apply environmental information regulations rather than the Freedom of Information Act 2000. [88291]
Ms Harman: On 5 June 2006, my Department published guidance on examining the key differences between the Environmental Information Regulations 2004 (EIR) and the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOI Act). This guidance was specifically designed to assist freedom of information officers in recognising circumstances in which they should apply the EIRs rather than the FOI Act. The guidance is called “EIR/FOI Boundaries Guidance” and can be found at www.foigov.uk. My Department and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs continue to provide advice and assistance to Departments on the interpretation of the FOI Act and the EIRs.
Mr. Hands: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what response the Government have made to reports of the Local Government Ombudsman on the inappropriate (a) destruction and (b) moving of gravestones by local authorities. [88231]
Ms Harman: The Local Government Ombudsmen's special report on memorial safety in local authority cemeteries was a helpful and timely reminder to local authorities that it should normally be unnecessary to lay down large numbers of gravestones.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many court orders have been made for the repossession of homes in each London borough since 1987. [87242]
Ms Harman: The following table shows the number of mortgage possession orders made in all London county courts since 1987.
| Number of mortgage( 1) possession orders made in county courts( 2) in London, 1987-2005 | |||||||||
| 1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1990 | 1991 | 1992 | 1993 | 1994 | 1995 | |
| 1996 | 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | |
| (1)
Local authority and
private. (2) The court, following a judicial hearing, may grant an order for possession immediately. This entitles the claimant to apply for a warrant to have the defendant evicted. However, even where a warrant for possession is issued, the parties can still negotiate a compromise to prevent eviction. (3) For the years 1987 to 1989, “Suspended orders” were not separately counted. They are thus included in “Orders made”. (4) Court closed. | ||||||||||
Mr. Heald: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs when she plans to make an announcement on the budget for the Information Commissioner's Office. [88294]
Ms Harman: I have no plans to make an announcement on the budget for the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO). The Commissioner's budget is derived from two sources. His data protection work is funded by notification fees payable under the Data Protection Act 1998. His freedom of information work is funded by grant in aid. On 18 April 2006, Baroness Ashton announced to the Constitutional Affairs Select Committee that an additional £550,000 in funding would be provided to the ICO. This means that the total grant in aid for the ICO for 2006-07 is £5,550,000.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many magistrates there are in courts in each London borough, broken down by (a) age, (b) ethnicity and (c) sex. [87713]
Ms Harman: Magistrates are assigned to 28 Local Justice Areas in London. The following table provides a breakdown of the average age, ethnicity and gender of magistrates for each area, as of 20 July 2006.
| Ethnicity | Gender | |||||||
| Local justice area | Total | Average age | White | BME | Unknown | Female | Male | |
| (1)
Figures less than five are not quoted following established government
statistics guidelines for protecting the confidentiality of
data
subjects. | ||||||||
Sarah Teather: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what steps her Department is taking to encourage magistrates from ethnic minority backgrounds; and if she will make a statement. [87717]
Ms Harman: We have put in place a range of measures to attract magistrates from ethnic minority backgrounds including:
informative publicity material about the magistracy to encourage applications from all sections of local communities and to raise awareness among employers;
a new Working Group of the main employer organisations and the Trade Union Congress has been set up to seek their active support in encouraging employees to join the magistracy;
funding of the Magistrates Shadowing Scheme run by Operation Black Vote to enable people from black and minority ethnic (BME) groups to shadow magistrates in order to gain valuable insight into the roles and responsibilities of a magistrate, and encourage applications.
Progress has been made in increasing diversity among magistrates.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs (1) how many magistrates courts have closed in each year since 1980, broken down into (a) rural and (b) non-rural areas; and if she will make a statement; [84745]
Ms Harman: My Department does not hold information on the magistrates courthouse closures which occurred prior to 1995. The following table provides details of the magistrates court closures (broken down into (a) rural and (b) non-rural areas) which took place between 1995 and 2006. HM Courts Service is committed to improving the standard of facilities provided to court users and in delivering greater value for money by increasing courtroom utilization. This includes the modernization and building of new modern courthouses as well as the co-location of magistrates courts with county courts.
| Number of magistrates courts closed in each year since 1995( 1) | |||||||
| Rural 75 | Rural 50 | Significant rural | Other urban | Large urban | Major urban | Total number of courts closed | |
| (1)
The rural constituency classification (introduced by the Rural Evidence
Research Centre on behalf of the Department for Environment, Food and
Rural Affairs in 2006) has been used to define whether court closures
took place in rural/urban areas. The classification divides
constituencies into the following six categories: Rural 75: Over 75 per cent. of the population live in rural settlements (including 207 large market towns) Rural 50: Over 50 per cent. of the population live in rural settlements (including 207 large market towns) Significant rural: More than 37,000 or between 26 per cent. and 50 per cent. of the population live in rural settlements. Other urban: Fewer than 37,000 or less than 26 per cent. of the population live in rural settlements; Large urban: A minimum of 50,000 or 50 per cent. of the population live in a large urban area; Major urban: A minimum of 100,000 or 50 per cent. of the population live in a major urban area (i.e. over 750,000 of the population). | |||||||
Sarah Teather: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many magistrates courts there are in each London borough. [87714]
Ms Harman: The information is as follows.
| Court(s) | Borough |
City of Westminster Magistrates Court and Marylebone Magistrates Court | |
Greenwich Magistrates Court, Woolwich Magistrates Court and Belmarsh Magistrates Court | |
Mr. Roger Williams: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many magistrates courts in England and Wales closed in each year since 1979. [86746]
Ms Harman: My Department does not hold information on the magistrates courthouse closures which occurred prior to 1995. The following table provides details of the magistrates court closures which took place between 1995 and 2006. HM Courts Service is committed to improving the standard of facilities provided to court users and in delivering greater value for money by increasing courtroom utilization. This includes the modernization and building of new modern courthouses as well as the co-location of magistrates courts and county courts.
| Total number of courts closed | |
Mr. Gauke: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what administrative functions for which her Department is responsible are outsourced overseas; and what assessment she has made of the merits of outsourcing further such functions overseas. [81558]
Ms Harman: My Department has not outsourced any of its administrative functions overseas and has no plans to do so. No assessment has been made of the merits of off-shoring.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs when she will answer question 67393, on legal aid, tabled by the hon. Member for Portsmouth, South for answer on 2 May 2006. [85275]
Vera Baird: I have today responded to the hon. Member’s question. It raised important legal considerations concerning the Data Protection Act 1998 and the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and these took time to consider. I am sorry that it has taken so long.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how much in legal aid has been provided to Mr. Nabeel Sami Fathallah; and if she will make a statement. [67393]
Vera Baird: I am not able to disclose this information. The Department can only disclose legal aid details where individuals have received legal aid in connection with litigation, and where that litigation has ceased.
Mr.
Amess: To ask the Minister
of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many private
prosecutions were undertaken in (a) Southend-on-Sea, (b)
Essex and (c) England and Wales in each of the last 10 years for
which figures are available; how many (i) succeeded
and (ii) failed in each year; and how many were stopped on the grounds
of (A) public interest and (B) insufficient evidence in each year.
[87215]
Ms Harman: Information about the number of private prosecutions is not collected and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost to the Department.
Lynne
Featherstone: To ask the Minister of State,
Department for Constitutional Affairs how many court cases in each
London court had to be rescheduled
because the defendant failed (a) to attend and (b) to
bring the appropriate documentation in each of the last five years.
[85955]
Ms Harman: The following tables show the number of trials held in London which had to be rescheduled (became ineffective) because the defendant did not attend. Separate tables are provided for cases dealt with in the magistrates courts where data is only available for Local Justice Areas, and for each of the Crown courts. Information on the number of cases wherethe defendant failed to bring the appropriate documentation is not collected and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
| Ineffective trials due to defendant non-attendance in the Crown court( 1) | |||||
| Crown court centre | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 |
| (1
)Does not include defendant absence through illness or
non-production from
prison | |||||
| Ineffective trials due to defendants non attendance in each Local Justice Area in the London magistrates court region( 1) | |||
| Financial year | |||
| 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
| (1
)Does not include defendant absence through illness or
non-production from
prison. | |||
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what the fee is for a property owner to appeal a Final Empty Dwelling Management Order to a Residential Property Tribunal. [86843]
Vera Baird: The fee would be £150.
Keith Vaz: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs how many statements have been made by victims’ special advocates in (a) Cardiff, (b) Manchester, (c) Birmingham and (d) London. [84526]
Ms Harman: No family impact statements have yet been made in any of the five pilot courts. The scheme applies to cases where a charge of murder or manslaughter is brought on or after 24 April 2006.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs on what occasions a statutory instrument sponsored by her Department has been reported by the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments as defective since October 2005. [85182]
Ms Harman: Reports from the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments contain full details of the statutory instruments which they have reported. The Department has provided information for the Joint Committee on Statutory Instrument’s Departmental Returns report for 2005. This is due to be published shortly. In 2006 there have been three statutory instruments reported as defective.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what advertising campaigns the Department has run between 2000 and June 2004; and what the (a) date and (b) cost was of each. [87068]
Mr. Lammy: The Department had a zero spend on advertising between 2000 and 2002. The expenditure on advertising from 2003 has been as follows.
| Spend (£) | |
| (1
)BBC
Charter | |
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) how much of the grant-in-aid to Arts Council England was allocated to theatre between 1997 and 2005; [87012]
Mr. Lammy: I refer my hon. Friend to the answersI gave him on 18 July 2006, Official Report,columns 331-32W.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to her oral statement of 10 July 2006, Official Report, column 1156, on the BBC Charter, what additional areas of the BBC’s financial responsibilities she is considering adding to the scrutiny remit of the National Audit Office; and if she will make a statement. [87657]
Mr. Woodward: We are not considering adding any areas of the BBC’s financial responsibility to the scrutiny remit of the National Audit Office (NAO). As my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State recently announced, we are currently exploring with the NAO how we might best establish an efficiency benchmark against which future performance might be judged.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to her oral statement of 10 July 2006, Official Report, column 1156, on broadcasting, which areas of the BBC’s financial responsibilities her Department is considering adding to the scrutiny remit of the National Audit Office; and if she will make a statement. [86795]
Mr. Woodward: We are not considering adding any areas of the BBC’s financial responsibility to the scrutiny remit of the National Audit Office (NAO). We are currently exploring with the NAO how we might best establish an efficiency benchmark against which future performance might be judged.
Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what initial assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the Chance to Shine campaign; and if she will extend similar schemes to other sports. [87624]
Mr. Caborn: The “Chance to Shine” initiative, a£50 million campaign to improve participation in cricket in state schools and run by the Cricket Foundation, has recently issued its first mid-term report.
There are no plans to extend the scheme to other sports.
Mr. Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many (a) USB (i) flash drives and (ii) memory sticks, (b) compact discs, (c) DVD-ROM discs, (d) laptop computers, (e) external computers hard drives, (f) internal computer hard drives and (g) desktop computers were purchased for use in her Department in each month since March 2005. [88747]
Mr. Lammy: This question cannot be answered save at disproportionate cost.
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans the United Kingdom Government have to establish a cultural agreement with India; and with which countries the United Kingdom Government has established a cultural agreement. [87616]
Tessa Jowell: The United Kingdom does not have general cultural agreements with other countries. However, we are in the process of finalising a Film Co-Production Treaty with India. The UK has similar Agreements on Film with France, Germany, Canada, Norway, Australia and New Zealand and we are also finalising one with South Africa.
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many people were employed in her Department in each year since 1997. [87618]
Mr. Lammy: The Cabinet Office collects and publishes annually statistical information on the civil service by Department. Historical information on the numbers of people employed by DCMS and its agency, The Royal Parks, is available in the Library and on the civil service website at:
<http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/management/statistics/archive/staff/index.asp>
<http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/management/statistics/employment/index.asp>
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) what steps she is taking to ensure that proprietors of homes in multiple dwelling units are informed of the necessary steps to upgrade their properties to receive digital television; [87817]
Mr. Woodward: The digital switchover programme, led by Digital UK working with Government and Ofcom, has established a dedicated workstream on housing issues. This will make sure the progress in converting communal television systems is tracked and that the right messages go to private and social landlords and to managing agents and other representatives. It will also be important to make sure that tenants are aware of what is happening, something Digital UK will do as part of its wider communications campaigns.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions her Department has had with (a) the National Landlords Association and (b) the National Housing Federation since 2001 on the provision of digital television services to tenants in private accommodation. [87818]
Mr. Woodward: We have had extensive contacts with the National Landlords Association and National Housing Federation regarding the provision of digital television services and digital switchover. Both organisations were represented on the editorial board which oversaw the development of the “Digital Switchover: A Good Practice Briefing Special", which we published, in association with the Chartered Institute of Housing in August 2005.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether it is her policy to support the use of integrated reception systems to provide digital services in multiple dwelling units. [87823]
Mr. Woodward: No. It is for landlords in consultation with residents to determine the most appropriate way of adapting communal TV aerial systems for digital television services.
Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the transmitter upgrade timetable is for digital switchover in Wales. [88858]
Mr. Woodward: Digital switchover will begin in the second half of 2009 in the HTV Wales region. We hope to be able to provide more specific information on the transmitter timetable for Wales later in the year, as well as for the west country and Granada regions, where the process will also begin in 2009.
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what support her Department provides to assist (a) small hotels, (b) guest houses and (c) other tourism businesses to meet the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. [87395]
Mr. Woodward: Visit Britain’s National Accessible Scheme (NAS) helps hotels, guest houses, self-catering accommodation and other accommodation providers, to improve access and quality for those with hearing, mobility and visual impairment. It includes a self-assessment pack, which businesses can complete to see where improvements should be made to improve access.
Mr. Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to her answer of 28 June 2006, Official Report, column 722W, on fixture lists, with which (a) football authorities and (b) sports governing bodies she is consulting; and what the process of consultation will be. [87674]
Mr. Caborn: My officials are currently consulting with all of the football authorities including the FA, the FA premier league and the Football League on the Independent European Sports Review. We will also be consulting the devolved Administrations who have responsibility for sport in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales and the Central Council of Physical Recreation (CCPR) who represent the interests of all sporting national governing bodies.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions she has had with the Football Association Premier League on ticket pricing. [88207]
Mr. Caborn: I have not held any discussions with the FA Premier League on ticket pricing.
Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what investigations her Department is undertaking into the football transfer market; and when they will report. [87627]
Mr. Caborn: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has no plans for any investigation into the football transfer market. This is, however, an issue that has been raised in the European Sports Review recently published by Jose Luis Arnaut.
Mr. Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) what estimate she has made of turnover in the gambling industry in each of the last five years; and if she will make a statement; [86104]
Mr. Caborn: The Office of National Statistics publishes data on gambling expenditure (i.e. stakes minus winnings) by UK households. In the last five financial years, expenditure on gambling, including the national lottery, is as follows:
| £ million | |
Mr. Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate she has made of the scale of betting conducted on British sporting events in other EU member states. [87675]
Mr. Caborn: The Government do not hold information relating to bets taken by operators based outside Great Britain.
Mr. Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what representations she has made to the EU study on gambling services in the internal market of the EU. [87676]
Mr. Caborn: My Department submitted evidence to the Swiss Institute of Comparative Law, which undertook the study on behalf of the European Commission, and an official attended a briefing for member states hosted by the Swiss Institute.
Mr. Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the impact on market share of UK-based gambling and betting businesses of their effective regulation. [88825]
Mr. Caborn: A Regulatory Impact Assessment of the Gambling Act 2005 was published on 21 April 2005. We are currently working through the programme of secondary legislation needed to implement the Act, in order that the process of implementation will be complete in September 2007. Statutory Instruments will be accompanied by Regulatory Impact Assessments where appropriate.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what powers the Government have to control online advertising of (a) online and (b) casino gambling; and if she will make a statement. [88842]
Mr. Caborn: The Committee of Advertising Practice will set standards and codes for non-broadcast advertising of gambling activities, including online advertising. The Secretary of State also has reserve powers under the Gambling Act 2005 to make regulations with regard to the form, content, timing and location of gambling advertising. She will not hesitate to use these powers if it becomes clear that self-regulation is not sufficient to protect children and vulnerable people from exploitation. Both the CAP codes and any Secretary of State regulations will apply to all non-broadcast advertising by gambling operators, wherever they are licensed.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent discussions her Department has held with the Treasury on the taxation regime for online gambling; and if she will make a statement. [89085]
Mr. Caborn: Officials from this department speak regularly with colleagues from other Government departments across a wide range of issues.
Mrs. Dean: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) when she expects to be able to announce her decision regarding the stake and prize levels of category C gaming machines; [87225]
(3) whether stakes and prize levels for category C gaming machines are being re-considered. [88009]
Mr. Caborn: I have had very constructive discussions with the relevant industry organisations and others interested in stake and prize levels for gaming machines and will be making an announcement shortly.
Mr. Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what account was taken of the Jockey Club’s financial position in proposals to transfer functions to the new Horserace Regulatory Authority. [88829]
Mr. Caborn: This is a matter for the Jockey Club, which I understand has made an assessment of its financial position in relation to the transfer of its functions to the new Horserace Regulatory Authority.
Mr. Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the compatibility of the horserace betting levy with EU legislation. [88830]
Mr. Caborn: The arrangements relating to the horserace betting levy were established before the UK joined the European Community. The European Commission keeps systems of aid under review in all member states but aids that pre-date a state's accession benefit from special rules. The Government are satisfied that the existing arrangements for the horserace betting levy are compatible with our obligations under the treaty establishing the European Community.
Mr. Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) what assessment she has made of the impact of the Horserace Betting Levy on the sale of media rights by racecourses; [88831]
Mr. Caborn: The regulatory impact assessment published in December 2003 to accompany the Horserace Betting and Olympic Lottery Act 2004 contains consideration of the impact of the Horserace Betting Levy on the sale of pre-race data and television pictures by racing.
Mr. Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) when she will announce her decision on the future of the Horserace Betting Levy after 2009; and if she will make a statement; [88832]
Mr. Caborn: No decision has been taken to extend of the Horserace Betting Levy beyond 2009 nor to vary the provisions of the Horserace Betting and Olympic Lottery Act, although the matter is under consideration by my Department following the publication of the phase two report of the Future Funding of Racing Review Group, Chaired by Lord Donoughue of Ashton.
Mr. Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the value was of each IT contract awarded by her Department in each of the last five years; and who the contractor was in each case. [89000]
Mr. Lammy: My Department has awarded IT contracts to NCC Group and BT in the last five years. It is not possible to provide individual costs save at disproportionate costs but the aggregated cost of all such contracts over the past five years would be less then £500,000.
Mr. Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport which IT contracts awarded by her Department in each of the last five years have been abandoned; and what the value was in each case. [89038]
Mr. Lammy: My Department has not abandoned any IT contracts in the past five years.
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) what percentage of public libraries were classed as of (a) good and (b) excellent standard in each year since 1997; [87016]
(2) what criteria are used to determine the quality of public libraries. [87017]
Mr. Lammy: Different aspects of the performance of the 149 public library authorities in England have been assessed, on different basis, for DCMS since 1998. There was no formal assessment by the Department before then.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) how many (a) books, (b) audio books, (c) videos, (d) computer games and (e) DVDs were stocked in public libraries in each London borough in each year since 1997; [87252]
Mr. Lammy: This information is not held centrally. However, the Public Library Statistics, published annually by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy, contain similar data to that being sought. The House of Commons Library holds copies for the period in question.
Mr. Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many licences for public houses in (a) rural and (b) urban areas were not renewed in each year from 1997. [86712]
Mr. Woodward: Information on the renewal of licences held by public houses in the years prior to the implementation of the Licensing Act 2003 (the 2003 Act) is not held centrally. There is no renewal process for licences issued under the 2003 Act.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment her Department has made of the likely impact of a change in the fee structure for premises licences under the Licensing Act 2003 on businesses which have already paid their renewal fees for their premises licence; and if she will make a statement. [87119]
Mr. Woodward: The Independent Fees Review Panel, chaired by Sir Les Elton, is considering the fee levels and structure and their impact on fee payers andlocal authorities. We will consider carefully any recommendations that the Panel makes when it reports to Ministers in the autumn.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate her Department has made of the number of premises licensed under the Licensing Act 2003 which have paid their renewal fees for their premises licence since February; and if she will make a statement. [87120]
Mr. Woodward: There is no renewal process for licences issued under the Licensing Act 2003, although an annual fee is paid on the anniversary of the grant of the licence. We have not made any estimate about the number of licence holders who have paid annual fees. However, as most applications to convert licences to the new regime were made near the end of the period for converting licences in July and August last year, it is likely that the majority of annual fees will not be due until the autumn.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when the Minister for Creative Industries and Tourism last met representatives of (a) the licensed trade, (b) local authorities, (c) residents’ groups, (d) magistrates, (e) police officers, (f) village hall associations, (g) sports clubs, (h) performing arts, (i) the tourism industry, (j) fire services and (k) the retail sector to discuss the Licensing Act 2003 and related legislation; and if she will make a statement. [87121]
Mr. Woodward: Since May 2006, I have held several internal meetings on the Licensing Act and have met with the Chair of the Independent Fees review panel. I have met, along with Home Office colleagues, representatives of the licensed trade on 15 May and representatives from local authorities and the police on 24 May.
I am planning to hold a series of stakeholder meetings in the autumn.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate she has made of the monthly peak construction costs for the building of the 2012 London Olympic and Paralympic Games sites. [87814]
Mr. Caborn: The Olympic Delivery Authority is currently procuring the delivery partner that will help it to deliver the Olympic and legacy construction. One element of the delivery partner’s role will be to examine the construction costs of the Olympic infrastructure. We expect this assessment to be completed within six to nine months of the appointment.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment of contamination in the Olympic Park and surrounding Lea Valley area has been undertaken; what the findings were; and what remedial action is being taken. [87815]
Mr. Caborn: Initial site investigation and desk-top research work, undertaken in support of the Olympic and Legacy Planning Applications, identified some contamination within the footprint of the Olympic Park area. Much of the contaminated land is former Brownfield or derelict land that has been used for a variety of industrial activities.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what recent estimate she has made of the cost of (a) security during construction of the Olympic Park in each year to 2012 and (b) security during the Olympic Games. [87816]
Tessa Jowell: I refer the hon. Member to the Answer I gave him on 24 May 2006, Official Report,column 1788W. Work continues on the evaluation of the security requirements for the various phases of the 2012 Olympic and Paralympics Games and their cost.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport whether she has set up a specialist unit within the Department to oversee the Olympic Games. [87824]
Tessa Jowell: The Government Olympic Executive (GOE) has been set up within DCMS under a Chief Executive, who has also been appointed as an additional Accounting Officer, to co-ordinate Government input into the 2012 Games. The Executive acts as a link between Government Departments on the one hand and LOCOG (the London Organising Committee) and the ODA (Olympic Delivery Authority) on the other. GOE works closely with all Departments to ensure a joined up approach to delivering the benefits and legacy of the 2012 Games.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what (a) arrangements have been made and (b) mode of transportation will be used to deliver raw materials to the Olympic Park. [87828]
Mr. Caborn: The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) are reviewing all modes of transport for raw materials, including river and rail usage, and will work with their Delivery Partner—to be appointed later this summer—to develop proposals for an effective, affordable and sustainable approach.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions she has had with other Government Departments on co-ordinating other large construction projects during the construction of the Olympic Park; and if she will make a statement. [87829]
Mr. Caborn: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has been a key participant in an initiative being led by the Office of Government Commerce (OGC) to improve the public sector’s demand management in construction procurement and to enhance the UK construction industry’s long term capacity planning so as to meet public sector demand and provide a healthy level of competition.
The study is due to be published shortly.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans there are for the use of (a) the Olympic Stadium and (b) other Olympic facilities after the Olympic Games have finished; and when she expects formal agreements on this to be finalised. [87830]
Tessa Jowell: Plans for the Olympic venues were set out in Theme 8 of the London 2012 Candidature File, which can be accessed on the website of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, www.london2012.com at:
http://www.london2012.com
Mrs. Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans her Department has to involve women in the delivery of the 2012 Olympics. [88202]
Tessa Jowell: The Olympic Delivery Authority and the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympics Games (LOCOG) are committed to diversity in the way they operate and engage with communities and groups. LOCOG, for instance, work with the Women's Resource Centre and the Women's Sports Foundation through their London 2012 Forum. My Department is working with the Department for Communities and Local Government (which has policy responsibility in Government for women's issues) to ensure that all sections of society have opportunities for involvement in the games. The Women and Equality Unit and the Equal Opportunities Commission have been involved in the development of this work and will help shape the final delivery plan. This work complements similar planning activity by the Greater London Authority to engage with a wide variety of London's diverse communities, including women.
Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what progress has been made against the objective of providing an ethical Olympic games in 2012; and if she will make a statement. [88209]
Mr. Caborn: The Olympic stakeholders are committed to an ethical Olympic Games and Paralympic Games in 2012 and a sustainable legacy for London and the UK. We are determined to ensure that local communities receive tangible benefit from the Games, particularly in the areas of local employment, affordable housing, training initiatives and education.
Lyn Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what mechanisms are being put in place in the procurement process for the Olympics to ensure private companies comply with good employment practices. [88211]
Mr. Caborn: The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA), which is responsible for delivering the infrastructure for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, places high importance on ensuring its ethical values are shared by potential contractors. Through the tendering process the ODA and its Delivery Partner will assess the commitment of bidders to these values, including their approach to good employment practices, training, recruitment, equalities and diversity. The ODA’s draft Procurement Policy, which was published on 19 July, states that it would like all employees of contractors and subcontractors working on ODA contracts to be on fair employment terms and conditions, such as the good practice guidance promulgated by the Chartered Institute of Personnel Development.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the project to bury the underground power lines atthe Olympic Park; what lessons have been learned from the project; and if she will make a statement. [88222]
Mr. Caborn: During the Bid period the Government and the Mayor recognised that the timescale for undergrounding the powerlines was such that serious work needed to start in November 2005 if the project was to be completed within an acceptable timescale. Work was set in hand and the London Development Agency was ready to award the contract for undergrounding after we had won the Games. They will shortly transfer the project to the Olympic Delivery Authority. The initial contracts are working well and they expect the project to be completed in line with original targets.
Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport by what (a) process and (b) criteria the Government and Sport England will allocate funds for improving Great Britain’s and Northern Ireland's potential medal performance in the 2012 Olympics between clubs and associations. [88247]
Mr. Caborn: All investment in medal potential for London 2012 is channelled through UK Sport, the Government's lead agency on high performance sport. UK Sport allocates Exchequer and Lottery funding solely through its World Class Pathway programme to the National Governing Bodies for Olympic and Paralympic sport, based on a range of factors including regular assessment of athlete performance at major international competitions. It is for those Governing Bodies to determine whether funding should then be provided for high performance sport through their clubs and associations.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many properties (a) owned and (b) managed by the National Trust (i) she, (ii) the Minister for Sport, (iii) the Minister for Culture and (iv) the Minister for Media and Tourism has visited in an official capacity in the last five years. [87825]
Mr. Lammy: I have visited the new National Trust offices in Swindon as well as Tyntesfield, the Victorian House and estate near Bristol. My right hon. Friends the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, the Minister for Sport and my hon. Friend the Minister for Media and Tourism have not yet had the opportunity to make official visits to properties owned or managed by the National Trust.
Mr. Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport when she last met her Scottish counterpart; and what subjects were discussed. [88774]
Mr. Lammy: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State last met Patricia Ferguson on 2 November 2005 at Sports Cabinet. They discussed the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Glasgow’s bid to host the 2014 Commonwealth Games; Sport and Physical Activity; the Terms of Reference of the Sports Cabinet; our approach to hosting mega events; practical arrangements for future Sports Cabinet meetings; and the British Council’s ‘Dreams and Teams’ initiative.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many times her ministerial office has been decorated in each of the last five years. [87653]
Mr. Lammy: In the last five years the ministerial office of the Secretary of State has been decorated twice—in 2002 and 2005. It will be redecorated again in the coming months as part of the refurbishment of the Department’s Cockspur Street headquarters building.
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what budget has been available to museums for acquisitions in each year since 1980. [87617]
Mr. Lammy: Museums have a number of sources of funding for acquisitions available to them. These include government funding (be it national or local), self generated income, private donations and grants available from bodies such as the Art Fund and the Heritage Lottery Fund. We do not keep figures on each of the different funding streams available for all museums.
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate her Department has made of the percentage of revenue savings through efficiency savings required from museums in the next financial year. [87619]
Mr. Lammy: Museums and galleries participating in the DCMS efficiency project are required to make savings of 2.5 per cent. of their grant in aid per annum.
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what the change was in funding to museums in each year since 1997 (a) without taking inflation into account and (b) taking inflation into account. [87620]
Mr. Lammy: Tables giving details of increases in grant in aid to 17 DCMS sponsored museums since 1997 (a) without taking inflation into account and (b) taking inflation into account are in the following tables:
| Table A: Grant in aid allocated to 17 DCMS sponsored museums( 1) 1997-98 to 2007-08 | ||
| £ million( 2) | Percentage change | |
| (1)
Covers DCMS funding allocated to 17 DCMS Sponsored museums. Excludes
allocations to some smaller museums and DCMS funding streams open to
museums and galleries such as Strategic Commissioning, and the
DCMS/Wolfson Foundation Museums and Galleries Improvement
Fund. (2) £ million not taking inflation into
account. | ||
| Table B: Grant in aid (CiA) allocated to 17 DCMS sponsored museums( 1) 1997-98 to 2007-08 | ||
| £ million( 2) | Percentage change | |
| (1)
Covers DCMS funding allocated to 17 DCMS Sponsored museums. Excludes
allocations to some smaller museums and DCMS funding streams open to
museums and galleries such as Strategic Commissioning, and the
DCMS/Wolfson Foundation Museums and Galleries Improvement
Fund. (2 )£ million taking inflation into
account, using 1997 as base
year | ||
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many visitors to publicly-funded museums in London there were in each year since 1997. [87777]
Mr. Lammy: The number of visits to museums and galleries in London funded directly by this Department in each year since 1997 are set out in the following table:
| Number of visits (million) | |
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will bring forward proposals to require seating at venues open to the public to be increased in size to accommodate obese people; and if she will make a statement. [86953]
Mr. Caborn: The Health and Safety Executive publishes guidance on seating in The Event Safety Guide and Guide to fire precautions in existing places of entertainment and like premises.
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what conditions were attached by the donor when Portchester Castle was given to the nation in 1974; and whether these conditions have been varied at any time. [87742]
Mr. Lammy: The guardianship of Portchester Castle was given to the Commissioner for Works on 23 June 1926. No conditions were attached to this gift.
Peter Luff: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what representations she has received on the listing of the Regal Cinema, Evesham. [87407]
Mr. Lammy: In October 2000, the Department received two applications to list this building. It was listed at Grade II in November 2000. Between November 2001 and January 2002, we received six requests, from the same individual, to de-list it or to approve ‘in principle’ plans to alter its interior. These were turned down. In June 2002, we received a request to upgrade the cinema to II. This was rejected, on the advice of English Heritage, 10 September 2002.
Sir Peter Soulsby: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many funding applications have been made to Sport England from organisations in Leicester South constituency; and if she will provide details of each application. [86131]
Mr. Caborn: Sport England does not hold information about funding applications in the required format. Over 900 applications have been made inthe East Midlands region, however, information specifically about the Leicestershire South constituency could only be provided at disproportionate cost.
Sir Peter Soulsby: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many Sport England grants have been awarded to organisations in Leicester South constituency; and if she will provide details of each award. [86132]
Mr. Caborn: Sport England records show that, since 1995, 14 lottery grants have been awarded to organisations in the Leicester South constituency at a total value of £6,927,625. In addition, the constituency may also have benefited from Community Club Development programme grants of £1,137,889 awarded to organisations throughout Leicestershire.
Details of the Lottery awards are given in the following table.
| Applicant | Purpose | Grant (£) |
Highfield Youth and Community Centre-new four court, sports hall and fitness room | ||
Spectator safety works and upgrade of security installations | ||
Implementation of ticket administration system; alterations to the roof of the pavilion | ||
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many (a) football, (b) rugby, (c) hockey, (d) tennis, (e) cricket, (f) swimming and (g) gymnastic clubs there were in (i) each London borough and (ii) London in the last year for which figures are available. [87417]
Mr. Caborn: DCMS does not hold the information requested and there is no central register for such clubs.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport on what occasions a statutory instrument sponsored by her Department has been reported by the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments as defective since October 2005. [85183]
Mr. Kemp: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many households in (a) Houghton and Washington, East constituency and (b) Sunderland city council area have been in receipt of free television licences in each year since the introduction of free licences for people over 75 years. [87374]
Mr. Woodward: TV Licensing, who administer free television licences for people aged 75 or over as agents for the BBC, are not able to provide geographical breakdowns of the number of free licences issued. However, the number of households with at least one person aged 75 or over claiming the winter fuel payment in the Houghton and Washington, East constituency in 2004-05 was 4,490, according to Department for Work and Pensions records. Winter fuel payment figures for the Sunderland city council area are not available; however, the figure in 2004-05 for the unitary authority of Sunderland was 15,330.
Mr. Byers: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will introduce a scheme to exempt those staying in respite care from the need to purchase a television licence in addition to the one purchased for their home. [87418]
Mr. Woodward: Television licences for respite care arises principally in relation to the Accommodation for Residential Care (ARC) concessionary scheme. As part of BBC Charter Review, the Government re-examined anomalies within the existing concessionary arrangements, with a special focus on the ARC scheme. In the March 2006 White Paper, the Government acknowledged the shortcomings of the scheme but noted that proposals for change focussed on individual anomalies rather than ways to improve the scheme as a whole. Previous changes to correct individual anomalies have done little to improve the scheme as a whole and have tended to create new problems. We therefore have no plans to amend the scheme, nor to introduce a separate concessionary scheme for respite care accommodation.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussion took place between her Department and the BBC about the decision not to renew the contract for renewal and purchase of television licences supplied at post offices. [87429]
Mr. Woodward: The award of the contract was a commercial decision for the BBC as television licensing authority. The Department for Culture, Media and Sport did not therefore have any discussions with the Corporation about the substance of the decision. However, DCMS officials were briefed by the BBC prior to the Corporation's announcement of the award of the contract on 31 March this year.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what provisions were agreed at the Ticket Tout summit on 17 July regarding the charging of administration fees in relation to tickets returned to the original sellers for re-sale at face value; and if she will make a statement. [87118]
Mr.
Woodward: At the summit on 17 July, the industry stated
their agreement to introduce a returns policy whereby fans can return
tickets to the original sellers at face value. There were no specific
provisions
agreed around charging of administrative fees in relation to these
tickets. The returns policy will be implemented by the industry itself
and I hope they will take all relevant views into account, especially
those of the ticket buying public, when doing this. The industry also
agreed to set up a website where fans could sell tickets to other fans
at face value.
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate she has made of the tourism deficit in the United Kingdom; and if she will make a statement. [87382]
Mr. Woodward: The UK tourism balance of payments deficit was £18.1 million in 2005. This figure has been produced using a range of data sources including the UK Tourism Survey and the International Data Survey.
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what initiatives have been put in place by her Department to increase domestic tourism visits. [87392]
Mr. Woodward: Domestic tourism represents around 80 per cent. of the turnover of the UK tourism industry. My Department funds VisitBritain to market England to the British, as advised by the England Marketing Advisory Board. £10.4 million a year in grant in aid to VisitBritain is presently allocated for this purpose.
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much funding her Department plans to contribute for (a) marketing, (b) e-tourism, (c) improving the quality of tourism products and (d) skills and training in connection with achieving the target of £100 billion value for tourism by 2010. [87393]
Mr. Woodward: My Department funds VisitBritain to market Britain overseas, and market England to the British and in some European territories as advised by the England Marketing Advisory Board. Grant in aid to VisitBritain under the current Spending Review is in the following table:
| Resource | Capital | Total (£000) | |
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what support her Department provides to assist (a) small hotels, (b) guest houses and (c) other tourism businesses to enhance the skills of employees. [87394]
Mr. Woodward: The Department is working closely with DFES and People 1(st) (the Sector Skills Council for the Hospitality, Leisure, Travel and Tourism industries) on a broad and ambitious skills programme.
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what Government support for the tourism industry was in 2005-06; and if she will make a statement. [87396]
Mr. Woodward: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) provided support to the tourism industry via grant in aid to VisitBritain of £49.3 million in 2005-06. VisitBritain used this money to market and promote the UK to both the domestic and international markets.
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what support her Department provides to assist small tourism enterprises in the use of information technology. [87399]
Mr. Woodward: My Department does not provide direct assistance to small tourism businesses in the use of information technology. Such assistance is available to tourism and other businesses through the Small Business Service.
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what support her Department gives to VisitBritain for e-tourism; and if she will make a statement. [87400]
Mr. Woodward: VisitBritain’s e-tourism activities are supported by grant in aid from my Department. These activities include the EnglandNet project, to which a total of £10 million has been allocated, including£2 million over the current spending review period from 2005-06 to 2007-08.
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what her Department's planned expenditure is on the tourism sector outside London in each of the next three years. [87401]
Mr. Woodward: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) provides support to the tourism industry via grant in aid to VisitBritian (VB). VisitBritian uses this money to market and promote the UK to both the domestic and international markets.
The level of grant in aid for VB agreed as part of the 2004 Spending Review was as follows:
| £000 | |||
| Resource | Capital | Total | |
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many tourists visited (a) London and (b) each London borough in each year since 1997. [87254]
Mr. Woodward: The tables set out the number of visits to London from (i) overseas and (ii) the UK where this included an overnight stay. Information is provided for the 2000 to 2005, equivalent data prior to this are not available.
| Inbound visits to London by year | |
| Visit (all) (Thousand) | |
| (1)
2005 data are
provisional. Source: International Passenger Survey (ONS). | |
| Domestic overnight trips to London by year | |
| Visit (all) (Thousand) | |
| (1)
VisitBritain believes the old UKTS methodology significantly
underreported
2004. (2) In 2005 an improved methodology was introduced for UKTS therefore direct comparison with previous years is not appropriate. Source: UK Tourism Survey (National Tourist Boards). | |
My Department does not have details of tourist visits to each London borough.
Mark Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many (a) television transmitters and (b) relay stations there are in (i) Ceredigion, (ii) Wales and (iii) the UK. [88859]
Mr. Woodward: Ceredigion has one transmitter and 13 relays. The main transmitter is at Blaen Plywyf.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (1) what part volunteers will play in the running of the 2006 UK School Games in Glasgow; [86726]
Mr. Caborn: The selection of an operator to organise the UK School Games for 2006 and for 2007-11, and the subsequent grant of National Lottery money was a matter for the Millennium Commission. In my capacity as Chair of the Commission, I will write to you on this matter and arrange for copies of my reply to be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.
Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what estimate her Department has made of the number of visitors to (a) the Avebury monuments, (b) Bowood House, (c) Corsham Court, (d) Lacock Abbey, (e) Iford Manor, (f) Longleat, (g) Stourhead, (h) Old Wardour Castle and (i) Silbury Hill in each year since 1997. [88242]
Mr. Lammy: The Department does not hold estimates of the number of visitors to Bowood House, Corsham Court, Lacock Abbey, Iford Manor, Longleat or Stourhead.
Visitor figures for the English Heritage property of Old Wardour Castle is as follows:
| Number | |
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the likely impact on the Brent economy when Wembley Stadium opens. [87784]
Mr. Caborn: It is estimated that when the Wembley Stadium opens it will attract around 2.5 million visitors a year, bringing an estimated annual visitor spend of £229 million to Wembley and the surrounding area. Around 7,500 permanent job opportunities will be created by economic activity directly related to the stadium.
Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many applications for lottery funding have been made by the Youth Charter organisation in the past five years; and how many such applications have been (a) successful and (b) unsuccessful. [87974]
Mr. Caborn: There has been one award to the Youth Charter for Sport, Culture and the Arts. This was awarded by Sport England in May 2005. The Department does not collect information about unsuccessful lottery applications.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what advertising campaigns her Department ran between 2000 and June 2004; and what the (a) date and (b) cost was of each. [87070]
Mr. McFadden: Significant advertising campaigns in support of specific policies are managed centrally through Cabinet Office Communication Group and placed through the Central Office of Information (COI).
| Dates | Budget/spend | |
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how much the Cabinet Office spent on supporting the Prime Minister in each year since 1996-97, including the estimated figures for 2005-06. [86853]
Hilary Armstrong: Supporting the Prime Minster is one of the Cabinet Office’s objectives. The costs associated with this function are identified and reported separately in the Annual Report and Resource Accounts.
Expenditure incurred on supporting the Prime Minister, prior to 2002-03, is not held centrally.
Mr. MacNeil: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1) how many (a) laptop and (b) desk top computers were purchased for use in 10 Downing Street in each month since March 2005; [86886]
Mr. McFadden: The Prime Minister’s office forms an integral part of the Cabinet Office
| USB flash drive | USB memory stick | Compact disc drive | DVD-ROM disc drive | Laptop computer | External computer hard drive | Desktop computer | |
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what guidance the Cabinet Office issues to Government Ministers on declaring to HM Revenue and Customs financial benefits (a) Ministers and (b) their spouses have received from foreign persons or foreign corporations directly or indirectly as a result of their Ministerial position. [87594]
Hilary Armstrong: Guidance for Ministers on the acceptance of gifts and hospitality is set out in Section 5 of the “Ministerial Code”.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many times her ministerial office has been decorated in each of the last five years. [87656]
Hilary Armstrong: According to available records, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster’s Ministerial Office, Private Offices and waiting area has been decorated once in the last five years.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster how many non-departmental public bodies have been abolished since December 2005; and what estimate she has made of the consequent effect on public funds. [87110]
Mr. McFadden: Information on public bodies sponsored by central Government is provided annually in the Cabinet Office publication “Public Bodies” which records information as at 31 March each year. This includes details of closed bodies and also government funding and expenditure.
Copies of previous publications are available in the Library for the reference of Members.
Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1) what guidance she has issued to departments on the publication of work preliminary to the conduct of regulatory impact assessments; [87950]
Mr. McFadden: The Cabinet Office’s guidance makes clear that final regulatory impact assessments (RIAs) should be made available to the House and published by Departments on their websites. Partial RIAs should also be published by departments as part of formal consultation exercises. The publication of initial RIAs and other work preparatory to the production of partial and final RIAs is for individual Departments to consider on a case by case basis.
Mr. Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what plans there are to undertake a review of Afghanistan (a) development needs and (b) the progress of international reconstruction projects. [86537]
Hilary Benn: I have been asked to reply.
Mr. Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the remit is of her Department's team of officials involved with the Poppy Elimination programme in Helmand Province; what their responsibilities are; and what their budget is. [86689]
Dr. Howells: The UK is spending £270 million over three years in support of the Afghan national drug control strategy. As part of this we have provided £276,000 in support of the Ministry of Counter Narcotics’ Poppy Elimination programme. The Poppy Elimination programme is a year-round programme operating in seven priority provinces including Helmand. It has been designed to assist provincial authorities deter poppy crop planting through public awareness and community outreach. The Poppy Elimination programme teams are also responsible for monitoring poppy cultivation, farmers’ planting intentions and the existence and effectiveness of licit rural development assistance. There are normally seven Afghan members of staff (who are employed by the Ministry of Counter Narcotics) and two international advisers in each Poppy Elimination programme team. Members of our embassy drugs team in Kabul have regular and frequent contact with members of the Poppy Elimination programme teams.
Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations she has made to her Chinese counterparts on the human rights situation in that country. [86705]
Mr. McCartney: The Government regularly raises human rights issues with the Chinese Government, through ministerial and official contacts, our bilateral Human Rights Dialogue and EU mechanisms. During my visit to China from 14-17 July, I urged the Chinese Government to make early progress towards ratification of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and raised concern about restrictions on freedom of expression, including on the internet and the movement and reporting of journalists. A range of human rights issues, including individual cases, were discussed in depth at the last round of the UK-China Human Rights Dialogue on 3 July.
Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent reports she has received on human rights violations against practitioners of Falun Gong in China. [86706]
Mr. McCartney: The Government regularly raises with the Chinese Government reports of the harassment and arbitrary detention of Falun Gong practitioners, most recently at the last round of the UK-China Human Rights Dialogue on 3 July. The Government are aware of media reports of widespread organ harvesting from Falun Gong practitioners in China, and a report by a former Canadian Cabinet Minister which supports these allegations. We have seen no further evidence to date to substantiate these reports. We will continue to raise our concerns about human rights violations against Falun Gong practitioners.
Greg Mulholland: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what steps are being taken to promote human rights observance in China. [88194]
Mr. McCartney: The Government regularly encourages the Chinese Government to improve its observance of human rights, through ministerial engagement, the UK-China human rights dialogue and EU mechanisms. The Government also funds a number of projects in China to improve human rights observance on the ground. These are detailed in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s (FCO) annual human rights report available on the FCO website at:
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the average cost to her Department was of replying to a letter written (a) by an hon. Member and (b) by a member of the public in the latest period for which figures are available, broken down into (i) officials’ time, (ii) cost of stationery and (iii) postage costs. [80481]
Mr. Hoon: The Cabinet Office, on an annual basis, publishes a report to Parliament on the performanceof departments in replying to hon. Members/Peers correspondence. The report for 2005 was published on 30 March 2006 (col. 76ws-78ws).
The information requested is not recorded and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 14 May 2002, Official Report, column 625, on the drugs trade, when she will place in the Library the details of the Afghan poppy eradication programme, maps and a video. [87747]
Dr. Howells: I apologise that we have, to date, been unable to locate the material to which my hon. Friend refers. As my hon. Friend will know, officials are in the process of searching archived records from 2002 and will provide any relevant material as soon as theyare able.
Mr. MacShane: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if she will place in the Library a copy of the reply the Prime Minister sent to the letter dated 10 March sent by the International Press Institute on the killings of journalists in East Timor. [86000]
Mr. McCartney [holding answer 17 July 2006]: Yes. The letter officials sent to the International Press Institute on 4 July, in response to their letter of10 March, will be placed in the Library of the House. I will also arrange for a copy of the letter to be sent to my right. hon. Friend.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 4 July 2006, Official Report, column 931W, on East Timor, what assessment she has made of whether acts of violence in Timor-Leste in 1999 (a) constituted crimes against humanity, (b) were planned by the Indonesian military and (c) were undertaken in opposition to the US mission sanctioned by Indonesia. [87090]
Mr.
McCartney: We have no record of any independent detailed
assessment of these issues. However, the UN-established serious crimes
unit was mandated to investigate crimes against humanity and other
serious crimes committed in East Timor in 1999 and issued a number of
indictments against people who were serving in the Indonesian military
at that
time. A parallel process, the Commission for Reception, Reconciliation
and Truth (CAVR) was set up by East Timor to look at less serious
offences. The CAVR report found that human rights abuses were committed
by Indonesian security forces. These human rights abuses were clearly
contrary to the aims of the UN Mission to East Timor.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer of 3 July 2006, Official Report, column 863W, on East Timor, what assessment she has made of the role of the Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation (CAVR); if she will encourage the Security Council to take CAVR’s findings into consideration; what assessment she has made of the competence of the Joint Indonesian and Timor-Leste Commission of Truth and Friendship to investigate acts of violence in Timor-Leste (a) in 1999 and (b) before 1999; and if she will make a statement. [87091]
Mr. McCartney: We recognise the important work done by the Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation to promote reconciliation in East Timor, both through its Community Reconciliation Process—whereby those responsible for less serious crimes made amends for their actions outside the formal judicial system, supporting grassroots reconciliation—and through its attempts to determine the truth about human rights violations from 1974-1999. It is for the UN Secretary-General to decide whether to disseminate the Commission’s report within the UN, including in the Security Council. The Commission for Truth and Friendship was set up by the Governments of East Timor and Indonesia specifically to look at the events surrounding the 1999 referendum. It commenced work in August 2005, for a period of one year and an extension has recently been announced until at least May next year. The central element to the Commission’s work is truth and reconciliation rather than seeking to bring the perpetrators of human rights violations to court.
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent discussions he has had with the Government of China on the protection of human rights in Tibet. [68195]
Mr. McCartney: I would like to apologise to the hon. Member for the delay in replying.
Mr. Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions she plans to have with her counterpart in India about whether there are any security lessons that the UK can learn from the recent bombings in Mumbai, India. [86885]
Dr. Howells: I would expect future discussions with Indian Ministers to include terrorism and the implications of the Mumbai bombings. UK officials here and in India have been in detailed discussions with the Indian authorities following the bombings and are considering what lessons we need to draw from these attacks. The authorities in India are still conducting their investigations.
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of (a) discussions between President George W. Bush and Prime Minister Mamnohan Singh of India regarding giving India access to US nuclear technology and (b) the implications of those discussions for (i) the non-proliferation treaty and (ii) regional stability. [86898]
Dr. Howells: We believe the agreement between the US and India on nuclear arrangements can make a significant contribution to energy security, development, economic and environmental objectives for India and the international community, as well as representing a net gain for the non-proliferation regime. The UK has strongly supported this initiative from its inception and has been actively involved throughout.
Mr.
Mullin: To ask the Secretary of State for
Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs further to the letter
of23 December 2005, (your ref: 967/05:
Freedom of Information), promising a response as a matter of
urgency
to the letter from the hon. Member for Sunderland South of 25 November
2005, on British training of Khmer insurgents in the 1980s, when she
expects to reply.
[87087]
Mr. McCartney: The Foreign and Commonwealth Office is conducting an internal review of its handling of my hon. Friend’s Freedom of Information request and hopes to provide a substantive response within one month.
Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what agreements were reached during recent discussions between the Government and the Libyan Government. [86467]
Dr. Howells: I visited Libya from 25-27 June and met the Prime Minister, Foreign Minister, and Ministers for Justice, Training and Employment, Economic Co-operation, and Europe. Our discussions covered bilateral relations, co-operation on counter terrorism, education and training, human rights, migration, and trade and investment. I raised the case of WPC Fletcher and also the Bulgarian and Palestinian medical staff and the HIV crisis in Benghazi. We shared views on regional issues, including Darfur.
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether the UK Government supports Japan’s proposed freeze on North Korean assets held overseas following recent missile tests. [86899]
Mr. McCartney: On 15 July, the UN Security Council unanimously adopted Resolution 1695. This requires UN member states to prevent missile and missile-related items, materials, goods and technology being transferred to or from the North Korean missile or weapons of mass destruction programmes, and prevent the transfer of any financial resources in relation to those programmes. The UK will implement this resolution in full, and expects others to do the same. It is entirely understandable that those in the region most immediately threatened by North Korea's actions might wish to consider additional measures of the sort in mind in Japan.
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations the UK Government made to support the UN resolution criticizing North Korea's recent missile tests proposed by the UN ambassador from Japan. [86900]
Mr. McCartney: The UK strongly agreed that the UN Security Council should respond urgently and robustly to North Korea's missile tests of 5 July. We therefore worked closely with Japan and other Security Council partners on the draft resolution. Security Council Resolution 1695, which was unanimously adopted by the Security Council on 15 July, condemns North Korean behaviour and requires them to suspend missile testing, re-establish their moratorium on tests, and return immediately, without pre-conditions, to the six party talks on their nuclear weapons programmes. We have urged the North Koreans to comply with these requirements and hope they will do so without delay.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs how many parliamentary questions tabled to her Department were awaiting a reply on 10 July 2006; which of those had been waiting longer than (a) two and (b) three weeks for a reply; and what the reason for the delay was in each case. [85205]
Mr. Hoon: There were 113 parliamentary questions tabled to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) awaiting reply at the end of 10 July 2006. Of those, 12 had been waiting more than two weeks and up to three weeks for a reply and 16 had been waiting longer than three weeks for a reply.
The reasons for delay can be categorised as follows:
Sixteen of the questions required additional information/input from FCO officials in the UK and overseas before they could be answered;
Twelve of the questions were awaiting ministerial clearance. In many cases the delay was due to heavy travel commitments by Ministers.
Mr. Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent assessment she has made of the political situation in Somalia. [86412]
Mr. McCartney: The Government are concerned at the recent violence in Somalia. We condemn it and urge all parties within, and outside, Somalia not to take any action which might perpetuate or provoke further violence, endanger the fragile cease-fire agreed between the Transitional Federal government and the Islamic Courts in Khartoum on 22 June, threaten the progress of dialogue between the parties in Somalia or damage the already dire humanitarian situation there. We promote dialogue, not confrontation. There are no military solutions to Somalia’s problems.
http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2006/sc8773.doc.htm
Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the (a) remit and (b) membership is of the Southern Iraq Donor Group; how often it meets; what its goals are; how its performance is measured; and if she will make a statement. [86678]
Hilary Benn: I have been asked to reply.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Cynon Valley of 5 June 2006, Official Report, column 315W, on East Timor, in what ways the joint UK-Australian police training initiative will augment past UN police training of forces in Timor-Leste; and what measures are in place to ensure integration of the UK-Australian initiative with the existing UN operation in Timor-Leste. [87088]
Mr.
McCartney: The UK-Australian Timor-Leste Police
Development programme (TLPDP) has been running since July 2004. The
programme is designed to strengthen the capacity of the East Timorese
police service to maintain law and order effectively and professionally
with full respect for human rights. The TLPDP complements other past
and current police training undertaken by the UN and bilaterally. The
programme has had a number of successes, including
the design of a new curriculum at the police academy to incorporate
human rights materials throughout. It produced its first batch of East
Timorese trainers in November 2005, who were able to graduate their
first basic recruit course of 260 new personnel earlier this year. The
TLPDP recently received a favourable mention in the 2006 human rights
watch report. Discussions have been held with the UN assessment team to
look at how the work of TLPDP might complement that of the new UN
policing activity in East
Timor.
Mr. Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the Government’s position is on the recent decision by the new UN Human Rights Council to send a fact-finding mission to the Palestinian Territories; and if she will make a statement. [86677]
Dr. Howells: At the General Affairs and External Relations Council on 17 July, EU Foreign Ministers expressed their support for the efforts of the UN Secretary General. We welcome the UN’s fact finding visit to the Occupied Territories.
Mr. Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what meetings (a) she and (b) her officials have had with representatives of the United States’ Department of Justice in the last 12 months. [86487]
Mr. McCartney: My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary has not had any meetings with representatives of the United States Department of Justice since taking up office. Officials from our embassy in Washington meet regularly with representatives of the United States Department of Justice. Most recently, they accompanied my noble Friend the Minister of State for Criminal Justice and Offender Management, Baroness Scotland of Asthal, on calls on representatives of the Department during her visit to Washington on 13 and 14 July.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of Statefor International Development what advertising campaigns the Department has run between 2000 and June 2004; and what the (a) date and (b) cost was of each. [87060]
Mr. Thomas: DFID did not have any major advertising campaigns during this period, and any activities which might be categorised as advertising were not disaggregated from programme activity and spend across DFID during this period. To undertake information gathering to separate out such costs would incur disproportionate costs. The main advertising costs incurred during this period were for recruitment advertising and is listed as follows:
| Financial year | Spend (£) |
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to the answer of 10 July, 2006, Official Report, columns 1404-0W, on Afghanistan, what the job description is for each of the roles listed. [85762]
Hilary Benn: DFID has 16 UK officials currently based in Afghanistan. 14 are based in Kabul, one in Badakhshan and one in Helmand. Job descriptions for these posts are as follows:
Overall financial, policy, programme, management, and security responsibility for DFID programme and staff in Afghanistan.
Provides the full range of support to the Head of Department, including acting as Head during the Head of Department's absence. Specific responsibility for policy, programme and strategy issues and leadership of team responsible for briefing and liaison with other Government Departments.
Leads on the policy, planning and implementation of Economic Management and Aid Effectiveness team objectives. This includes strengthening donor co-ordination and harmonisation in Afghanistan; contributing to discussions on key issues affecting the economic management reform agenda; management of technical assistance to Ministries of Finance; and overseeing and managing the design and implementation of the team project portfolio, which focuses on aid channelled through the Government budget.
Provides support to the Head of Office in the co-ordination and direction of DFID's overall programme of support to the Government of Afghanistan. Duties include the development and communication of policy and strategy; building and strengthening partnerships between DFID Afghanistan and other donors; and effective support to Ministers and Senior Officials on programme-wide issues.
Provides support, guidance and mentoring to local programme staff to build capacity in effective project/programme cycle management. Provide responses to general public inquiries, freedom of information requests, parliamentary questions and ministerial correspondence. Supports the development and implementation of DFID's communication strategy. Maintains an accurate financial overview of the DFID programme, and provides some administrative assistance to the Head of Office.
Leads on
policy, planning and implementation of the Livelihoods work programme.
Main duties include ensuring the livelihoods programme contributes
effectively to delivery of
DFID's strategy in Afghanistan; development of priority planned new
activities in the Livelihoods portfolio; and engagement with other
donors and the Afghanistan Government on strengthening the policy and
planning environment for broad livelihoods work. Also the security
officer for
DFID.
Contributes to the development of nationally-owned strategies and programmes addressing rural livelihoods in Afghanistan; monitors DFID interventions in rural livelihoods through participating in programme/project committees; and prepares briefings on livelihood issues and DFID progress for UK Ministers and senior officials.
Works within the state building team on design and implementation of security sector reform policy and programming. Key duties include providing effective support on policy and programmes relating to security and development issues; building relationships with international donors, Provincial Reconstruction Teams and the military in order to build a more coordinated and coherent response in area of security and development; providing effective advice and leadership on the strategic direction of the Global Conflict Prevention Pool for Afghanistan in partnership with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and the Ministry of Defence (MoD); and maintaining responsibility for building awareness and communication on issues of civil-military coordination.
Responsible for ensuring effective project/programme cycle management in line with DFID procedures and good practice; supporting the team leader in policy dialogue and formulation, particularly in the area of public administration reform and provincial stabilisation; providing responses to requests for briefing and parliamentary questions; and composing reports on different aspects of the team's programme.
Lead responsibility for HR issues including posting and promotion, external recruitment and staff development. Responsibility for the day-to-day running of the office, and ensuring the administration team has effective systems in place to meet corporate rules and regulations. Lead responsibility for administration budget, forecasting, further development of financial management and responsibility for asset management.
Supports the office manager to ensure effective day-to-day running of the office and guest houses. Responsible for financial monitoring of the administration budget; ensuring delivery of all basic office services including logistics for all visitors for which DFID have duty of care; ensuring vehicle fleet is managed effectively; and monitoring of health and safety procedures.
DFID representative in the British Embassy Drugs Team, with a particular responsibility for advising on development and rural livelihoods issues.
International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) Development Adviser
Provides advice to the Commander of ISAF, the ISAF Command Group and HQ Allied Rapid Reaction Core (ARRC)/ISAF planning staff regarding the impact of military activities on development and humanitarian issues. Also responsible for liaising with NATO member states regarding current development and humanitarian priorities to ensure coherence of HQ ARRC/ISAF strategy and planning; Badakhshan.
Located in a multi-donor mission in Faizerbad, concentrating on sub-national governance reform work, development coordination with provincial authorities and ensuring that national programmes can be rolled out and implemented at a provincial level. Currently in Kabul awaiting deployment.
Located in the Helmand Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT), helping develop, maintain and articulate a strategic vision and operational work plan for the PRT including how DFID can best contribute to provincial stabilisation in the south.
Mr. Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) how much was paid by the Government in compensation to farmers in Afghanistan for voluntary opium poppy eradication in (a) 2002, (b) 2003, (c) 2004 and (d) 2005; [86475]
Dr. Howells: I have been asked to reply.
Mr. Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much was spent by his Department on (a) opium poppy eradication and (b) rural development in Afghanistan in (i) 2002, (ii) 2003, (iii) 2004, (iv) 2005 and (v) 2006. [86490]
Hilary Benn: The information is as follows.
| Financial year | Eradication (£ million) |
| Financial year | Rural development (£ million) |
Mr. Andrew Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make a statement on the progress of the Global Fund to Fight Aids, Tuberculosis and Malaria. [86429]
Mr. Thomas: The mid-term review of the first replenishment of the Global Fund took place on4-6 July. The review highlighted that the Global Fund is demonstrating significant progress against key targets, is improving grant performance, especially in weak systems and fragile states, and is implementing the recommendations of the Global Task Team on improving AIDS co-ordination among multilateral institutions and international donors.
544,000 people on antiretroviral treatment
1.43 million received tuberculosis treatment
11.3 million insecticide-treated bed nets distributed
7.3 million people treated for malaria
5.7 million people received HIV counselling and testing
560,000 orphans provided with basic care and support.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with the government of Angola concerning its request for a post conflict donor conference; and if he will make a statement. [85538]
Hilary Benn: I refer my hon. Friend to the response I gave on 3 November 2005, Official Report, column 1292W.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether the Department funds projects in Argentina to tackle (a) trafficking in people and (b) the commercial sexual exploitation of children. [86343]
Mr. Thomas: The Department for International Development is not funding any projects in Argentina to tackle trafficking in people or the commercial exploitation of children.
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment his Department has made of outbreaks of cholera in (a) Southern Sudan and (b) Southern Africa. [87466]
Hilary
Benn: In South Sudan, an ongoing cholera epidemic has
resulted in 16,964 reported cases of the disease, with 504 deaths. Of
these, 6,163 cases and 116 deaths have been in Juba. The international
response, working in partnership with the Sudanese Ministry of Health,
has recently made good progress in bringing the outbreak under control
in the South. Over the last week in Juba, for instance, there were only
10 new cases and no deaths reported. There continue to be new cases
reported in some parts of the South but the response has become
increasingly effective in containing these and treating those infected,
according to DFID’s humanitarian
partners.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will list the Unnumbered Command Papers produced by his Department in each session since 1976; by what means (a) hon. Members and (b) members of the public can (i) inspect and (ii) obtain copies; and if he will make a statement. [81325]
Hilary Benn: Documents which are laid before Parliament as unnumbered Command Papers are generally restricted to Explanatory Notes to Treaties, Explanatory Memoranda to Statutory Instruments and some Treasury Minutes. All other documents are published in the Numbered Command Papers series.
A complete list of unnumbered Command Papers can be produced only at disproportionate cost.
Copies of all unnumbered Command Papers are made available via the Vote Office.
Roger Berry: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many disabled staff in his Department received support through the Access to Work scheme (a) in each of the last five years and (b) in 2006-07. [82230]
Mr. Thomas: The number of disabled staff in DFID that received support through the Access to Work scheme in each of the last five years is detailed in the following table:
| DFID staff (number) | |
Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development pursuant to his answer of 10 July 2006, Official Report, column 1408W, on departmental travel costs, whether each flight was a return flight; how many of the trips involved overnight stays; what the cost of overnight stays was; what the purpose was of the trips; and what assessment was made of using alternative travel to Glasgow to achieve the objectives. [86376]
Mr. Thomas: There were 1,056 return flights from London to Glasgow during 2005, 874 of which involved overnight stays at a total cost of £126,642. All travellers are required to confirm the business purpose when booking flights but DFID does not keep a central record. We are evaluating our investment in video-conferencing and better communication to provide a cost effective alternative to travel and staff must confirm before booking flights that they have considered conducting their business by other methods.
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will make a statement on his Department’s commitments to address climate change and environmental degradation in developing countries. [87475]
Hilary Benn: The Department for International Development (DFID) has issued two key papers in recent months outlining our commitments on climate change and the environment.
environmental wealth—natural resources—is a main source of growth in developing countries, and central to livelihoods of poor people;
environmental sustainability is one of the seven essential components for developing country growth;
we can help countries develop better approaches to using assets e.g. forests and water, in a more sustainable manner, and help manage the environmental impacts of growth;
we need to focus on the global consequences of growth—climate change has negative consequences for poor countries;
developing countries need assistance to access cleaner energy;
we need better information about the predicted impacts of climate change; and
developing countries need support to adapt and build resilience to climate change.
integrating environmental management for poverty reduction into our work, focusing on opportunities as well as risks;
supporting country driven processes e.g. poverty reduction strategies, to integrate local and global environmental priorities;
providing technical assistance in selected countries and circumstances; and
strengthening donor co-ordination on the environment, internationally and at country level.
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how his Department will assist in strengthening (a) biodiversity, (b) the ecosystem and (c) conservation services in developing countries. [87476]
Hilary Benn: DFID is committed to incorporating biodiversity into development in helping to improve poor people’s livelihoods and in supporting developing countries to use the benefits of biodiversity and conservation to reduce poverty.
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many staff in his Department work on (a) climate change and (b) other environmental issues in developing countries, based(i) in the UK and (ii) abroad. [87478]
Hilary Benn: Implementing DFID’s environment policy involves a range of staff, including programme managers and advisers with environment, livelihoods and infrastructure responsibilities.
Global Environmental Assets (covering climate change, biodiversity, desertification etc.);
Environment for Sustainable Development (local environmental issues and minerals); and
Water and Energy.
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many meetings he has had with other Ministers to discuss climate change and its impact on developing countries in the last 12 months. [87479]
Hilary Benn: I was a member of the ad-hoc ministerial committee on climate change established prior to the G8 summit in 2005 to give officials a steer on this issue. This group met several times in the run up to the summit. Following the G8 summit responsibility for the international dimension of the UK’s climate change strategy was taken on by the ministerial committee on energy and environment (EE), chaired by the Prime Minister, of which I am a member. In late June 2006, I met with the cross-party group of MPs who are participating in the G8+5 climate change dialogue, to discuss DFID’s approach to tackling climate change. Climate change has also been identified as a key priority in the UK Government’s latest Development White Paper.
Mr. Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department allocated to tackling diseases in developing countries in the last year for which figures are available, broken down by disease. [87729]
Mr. Thomas: DFID uses a range of different aid instruments, from direct support to countries to funding through multilateral agencies. It is therefore not possible to break down spending on individual communicable diseases; however it is possible to separate out AIDS from other communicable diseases.
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent assessment his Department has made of the food security situation in (a) Southern Africa, (b) the Horn of Africa and (c) Western Africa. [87465]
Hilary Benn: In Southern Africa, the overall picture on food production shows a marked improvement this year compared to the 2004-05 growing season, when DFID spent more than £67 million to deliver emergency assistance to up to 11 million affected people. Urgent humanitarian needs are unlikely this year, except in Zimbabwe, where needs remain pronounced.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions his Department has had with the World Health Organisation on access to clean water and sanitation in Haiti. [85998]
Hilary Benn [holding answer 19 July 2006]: DFID regularly discusses water and sanitation with the World Health Organisation (WHO) through the Joint Monitoring Programme implemented by WHO and UNICEF, which provides data on access to safe water and basic sanitation. However, we have not had any recent specific discussions on Haiti.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what projects are being funded by his Department in Helmand province; and how much is being spent on each project. [85757]
Hilary
Benn: During my recent visit to Helmand, I announced a
£30 million Helmand Agriculture and Rural Development Programme.
This aims to increase economic opportunities for the rural poor of
Helmand. It will support the Government of Afghanistan to roll out
existing successful National Programmes in Helmand. These programmes
will provide improved water and sanitation, essential small scale rural
infrastructure, greater access to small loans, improved roads and access
to markets and agricultural inputs and training to the people of
Helmand. The programme will be implemented over three
years.
| Project | Start day in May 2006 | Total cost (£) | Amount paid to date (£) |
Rehabilitation of the a shrine: construction of wall and gate | |||
Rehabilitation of area adjoining shrine of road and footpath | |||
Improving a Friday market and construction of protection wall | |||
Disbursement of food aid provided by Government of Afghanistan | |||
Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what aid his Department has provided in response to the earthquake that struck Java in May. [87285]
Mr. Thomas: DFID has so far given £5 million to relief agencies working to address the urgent humanitarian needs of people affected by the earthquake that struck Java in May. That support includes £1 million for the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies to pay for the provision of emergency relief supplies. The rest of the money is being spent through various UN and non-governmental organisations to provide medical supplies and services, shelter and water and sanitation.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assistance his Department has given the Java island following the tsunami; and if he will make a statement. [87665]
Mr.
Thomas: DFID has not provided any assistance in the wake
of the tsunami in Central and West Java because the Government of
Indonesia has stated thatit does not require international
assistance. The Indonesian Minister of People’s Welfare has
provided 750 million Indonesian Rupiah (80 million US Dollars)
to the local government in Ciasmis, West Java and250 million
Indonesian Rupiah (27 million US Dollars) to the local government in
Cilacap, Central Java for their emergency
response.
Mr. Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much UK aid was granted to Lebanon in each of the last five years; and how these funds were allocated. [88124]
Hilary Benn: The UK channels most of its aid to Lebanon through the EC and the UN. The multilateral figures are based on UK core contributions to theEC and the UN. The UK has also provided some bilateral support to Lebanon, largely through the ‘Small Grants scheme’ administered by the Foreignand Commonwealth Office.
| Multilateral (£ million) | Bilateral, (£ million) | ||||||
| EC | UN | Total multilateral | Grants and other aid in kind | Humanitarian assistance | Total bilateral | Grand total | |
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of Statefor International Development what projects his Department is funding in (a) Sudan, (b) Lebanon, (c) Israel and (d) Syria; and if he will make a statement. [87328]
Hilary Benn: We are supporting the following projects and activities in Sudan:
UN-managed Common Humanitarian Fund, plus support for UN sector co-ordination
Humanitarian programmes of Non Governmental Organisations
International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC)
World Bank-managed Multi Donor Trust Funds (National and South), plus consultancy support
Basic Services Fund for Southern Sudan
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP): Local Government Recovery project
Safety, Security and Access to Justice programme (Southern Sudan)
Christian Aid: National Strategy
Capacity Building for Government of Southern Sudan
UNICEF: Support for Strengthening Water Sector Capacity in Southern Sudan
Malaria Consortium National Response
Ockenden International: Partnership for Peace
Capacity building for Debt Management
Rift Valley Institute
GOAL: Female Literacy and Empowerment
Scholarships programme
UNDP: Strategic Partnership Arrangement
Support for UN/ World Bank Darfur needs assessment
BBC World Service Trust: Darfur Lifeline Radio
Tufts Institute: Research on livelihoods in Darfur
PACT: Southern Sudanese Pre-Interim Transition to Peace
UNDP : Support for Demobilisation, Disarmament and Reintegration ( DDR)
Security Sector Adviser
International Military Advisers Team
Peace Building Fund
Support for East Sudan Talks
Support for Africa Union information campaign
Support for the Africa Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS)
Peace Now Settlement Watch
Ir Amin—Advocacy project on the status of Jerusalem
Economic Co-operation Foundation—Gaza Disengagement
Council for Peace and Security—Advocacy work on Israeli separation
HaMoKed/B’Tselem—Freedom of movement for Palestinians
Palestinian media activities in support of the Roadmap (joint GCPP/USAID)
Ah Hoc Liaison Committee
EXACT—Management of Shared Water Resources to Reduce Pollution Risks
Police and Justice Sector Reform—Training courses for the Lebanese Internal Security Forces.
Mr. Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how his Department measures progress against the Millennium Development Goals in relation to countries where data on performance in key sectors is missing or incomplete. [86032]
Hilary Benn [holding answer 18 July 2006]: DFID uses international data from the World Bank andthe United Nations to assess progress towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in the countries in which it has a programme. It is not possible to assess progress towards the MDGs in countries where data on performance in key sectors is missing or incomplete. In such countries, DFID will identify other ways to measure progress. For example, DFID might use targets contained in partner government national strategies as the basis on which progress is assessed. In some countries, sample surveys conducted through DFID projects or by other agencies provide useful data on which assessments of progress can be made.
Andrew
George: To ask the Secretary of State for
International Development how much funding his Department has provided
for the Millennium
Ecosystem Assessment; and if his Department will fund a future
Millennium Ecosystem Assessment.
[87477]
Mr. Thomas: DFID provided funding to the International Institute for Environment and Development of approximately £68,000 for lead co-ordination of a forests working group of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment and contributions on climate change. DFID recognises the importance of the Assessment and it informed development of our own environmental policy. As far as we know there are no plans to undertake another Assessment so soon after the previous one. We would consider possible support to such an initiative should this decision be made.
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what projects in the Palestinian Territories funded by (a) the United Kingdom and (b) the European Union were damaged or destroyed by Israeli military action in the month prior to 19 July. [88156]
Hilary Benn: Because of military activity, aid agencies currently face difficulty assessing the extent of damage to facilities in the Gaza Strip. However, initial reports from northern Gaza indicate that four schools and one clinic provided for Palestinian refugees through the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) have sustained heavy damages. Fifty seven empty food containers leased by UNRWA have also been damaged at a cost of £31,000. The European Community and EU member states collectively provide more than half of UNRWA’s core funding and two of the damaged schools were specifically financed from European Community funds.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions he has had with the Government of Paraguay on (a) debt bondage affecting indigenous peoples in the Chaco and (b) the trafficking of human beings and the system known as criadazgo affecting child domestic workers; and whether the Department is supporting projects in Paraguay to tackle these problems. [86342]
Mr. Thomas: The Department for International Development is not funding projects nor had discussions with the Government of Paraguay on the problems of debt bondage affecting indigenous people in the Chaco or on the trafficking of human beings.
David
Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for
International Development what assessment he has made of the impact of
the classification of returned
medicines under the Hazardous Waste Regulationson the provision
of pharmaceutical treatments to developing countries; and if he will
make a statement.
[86324]
Hilary Benn: When returned medicines have been sent abroad to developing countries in the past, they have caused a number of problems in receiving countries. This has been because of quality and labelling issues, the medicines were not always the ones wanted, and the cost of sorting and then disposing of the useless products.
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department has spent on using public affairs and public relations agencies in each of the last two years; and on what projects in each case. [84820]
Mr. Thomas: In the last two years, the following three projects using public affairs or public relations agencies were commissioned centrally by DFID at a total cost of £223,509.19.
June to September 2004
Agency: COI
Total Cost: £16,890.63
Project: To provide DFID with a corporate communications strategy and three-year plan. COI developed communication objectives, strategies and plans that would help achieve DFID’s organisational objectives.
November 2005 to March 2006
Agency: Weber Shandwick
Total Cost: £203,918.56
Project: To support the Asia 2015 conference with media relations in both the UK and throughout key markets in Asia, specifically India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal.
April 2006
Agency: Capricorn Videos
Total Cost: £2,700
Project: To record the DFID Public Information and Consultation Week in April 2006 in order to produce a two-hour film for local television.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many public appointments are within his patronage; what (a) salary and (b) other emoluments are attached to each; and what the comparable figures were in (i) 1976, (ii) 1986 and (iii) 1996. [83174]
Hilary Benn: DFID currently has 17 public appointments that are the responsibility of Secretary of State for International Development. This comprises two members of the Crown Agents Holding and Realisation Board and 15 members of the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission. The Chair of the Commonwealth Scholarship Commission (CSC) currently receives £5,000 per annum. An honoraria of £200 is paid to those CSC Board members who participate in selection boards for awarding scholarships. Additionally, CSC Board members receive remuneration for travel expenses. The members of the Crown Agents Holding and Realisation Board attract no emoluments.
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment his Department has made of the (a) humanitarian and (b) security situation in Somalia. [87470]
Hilary Benn: We keep the humanitarian situation in Somalia under constant review. There have been a number of assessment visits this year with DFID participation, and I visited the drought-affected area around Wajid myself in May.
The northern parts of Somalia remain relatively stable.
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment his Department has made of the (a) humanitarian and (b) security situation in the Sudan, broken down by region. [87469]
Hilary Benn: The information is as follows:
Security information is as follows:
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what plans he has to tackle the shortage of water in Darfur. [88112]
Hilary Benn: Water access and management are root causes of the conflict in Darfur DFID’s expenditurefor water and sanitation in Sudan is approximately£17 million per year, which accounts for approximately half of DFID’s total water and sanitation expenditure in Africa. The bulk of these funds are provided as humanitarian support channelled through the Common Humanitarian Fund and NGOs. We are also providing direct support to UNICEF, which is a key donor for the water sector.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will assess the outcome of the Brussels Conference on Darfur; and what additional resources have been pledged. [88113]
Hilary Benn: The EU estimates that at least$186 million was pledged to the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) at a Donors' Conference in Brussels on 18 July, though they are still finalising the total figure. This is a very creditable result. The UK re-affirmed its pledge of 20 million for AMIS for this financial year. We stand ready to go on pressing others to contribute more should it prove necessary.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many (a) helicopters and (b) armoured vehicles have been lent to the African Union Mission in Sudan. [88114]
Hilary Benn: The Canadian Government have supplied 105 armoured personnel carriers and 25 helicopters, providing 1,200 helicopter flying hrs per month to the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS). Canada has recently announced it would also contribute a further 200 helicopter flying hours per month. We are not aware that any other helicopters or armoured vehicles have been lent to AMIS.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what strategies have been put in place to protect women from violence in Darfur, with particular reference to those residing in camps. [88115]
Hilary
Benn: The African Union mission in Darfur (AMIS)
co-ordinates firewood patrols to provide
protection for women when they leave camps for internally displaced
persons (IDPs). Where this is happening the number of reported rapes
has decreased significantly, and we are encouraging the African Union
(AU) to promote this practice. AMIS also has civilian police presence
in many IDP camps and we are urging AMIS within its resources to
prioritise the civilian protection elements of its
mandate.
Mark Simmonds: To ask the Secretary of Statefor International Development what funding his Department (a) has allocated in each of the last three financial years and (b) plans to allocate in each of the next three financial years to technical assistance. [84138]
Hilary Benn: Technical assistance is the provision of know-how in the form of personnel, training, research and associated costs.
| Expenditure on technical assistance for last three years is as follows: | ||||||
| £000 | ||||||
| Category of Technical Assistance (TA) | 2002-03 | As percentage of total TA | 2003-04 | As percentage of total TA | 2004-05 | As percentage of total TA |
Mr. Meacher: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will place in the Library a copy of the deliberations of the Treaty of Amsterdam Article 133 Committee since 1997. [79788]
Mr. McCartney: I have been asked to reply.
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much funding has been pledged to the UN Central Emergency Response Fund for 2007 by (a) the UK, (b) the EU and (c) G8 countries. [87467]
Hilary Benn: The UK has disbursed £40 millionto the UN Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF) for year 2006. The UK has pledged a further £40 million per annum for the next three years (ie in total the UK will provide £160 million over four years).
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent discussions he has had with his G8 counterparts on their (a) current and (b) planned contributions to the UN Central Emergency Response Fund. [87468]
Hilary Benn: During the development of the Central Emergency Response Fund (CERF), my officials andI had discussions with various G8 countries at bilateral and international meetings and by telephone. Five G8 members—UK, Canada, US, Japan and France have committed funds to the CERF and I continue to encourage other countries to contribute.
Ms Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his Department's policy is on (a) the provision of piped water connections to provide water to the urban poor and (b) other forms of water provision; and if he will make a statement. [85801]
Hilary
Benn [holding answer 19 July 2006]: DFID helps
developing country governments to implement their own plans for
provision of water and sanitation, which include both piped and public
or communal provision to safe water, as appropriate. DFID provides
direct financing and technical know-how. We also support the
international system, particularly the UN
to gather data on access to safe water and basic sanitation. In most
countries, access to water and sanitation is better in urban areas than
it is in rural. Access to water may be through house connections or
through public connections close to the home.
Ms Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much his Department has spent on assistance on water provision in cities in the developing world since 1997. [85803]
Hilary Benn [holding answer 19 July 2006]: DFID commissioned an independent report on its expenditure on water and sanitation in the developing world. This report, “Financial Support to the Water Sector”, was produced by Atkins Consultants and is publicly available at http://www.dfid.gov.uk/pubs/files/water-sector-finance.pdf. Copies have also been placed in the Libraries of both Houses, in response to previous related parliamentary questions.
Nick Harvey: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what programmes are funded by his Department on (a) women’s rights, (b) equality issues and (c) domestic violence prevention in (i) Iraq and (ii) Afghanistan. [86481]
Hilary Benn: DFID currently has two programmes supporting civil society in Iraq in promoting women’s rights and equality issues, among other aspects.
We have not funded specific projects in Iraq on domestic violence prevention.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what advertising campaigns the Department has run between 2000 and June 2004; and what the (a) date and (b) cost was of each. [87055]
Jim Fitzpatrick: Expenditure on advertising by the Department procured through Central Office of Information (COI) for 2000-01, 2001-02, 2002-03, 2003-04, was £9.4 million, £6.1 million, £1l.5 million, £4.1 million. Figures exclude VAT. The following table contains details. The Department does not hold information on other campaigns centrally, including those by non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs), and to do so would entail disproportionate cost. In addition to provide information against each entry on the intended audience and purpose of the campaign, would again entail disproportionate costs.
| £ | |
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many and which buildings occupied by his Department have air conditioning installed; what plans he has to install further air conditioning in his Department's buildings; and if he will make a statement. [87107]
Jim Fitzpatrick: Of the 15 buildings currently occupied by the Department (either leased commercially or as a tenant of another government body), the following have centralised cooling or air conditioning systems: 1 Victoria Street, London SW1; 151 Buckingham Palace Road, London SW1; Kingsgate House, London SW1; Amberley House, Gloucester; Tay House, Glasgow.
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent discussions he has had with his counterparts in states in the Airbus consortium; and if he will make a statement. [86723]
Margaret Hodge: My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, met his counterparts at a meeting at the Farnborough Air Show on 17 July. A copy of the communiqué issued at that meeting is as follows:
Airbus Ministerial Meeting at Farnborough International Air Show 2006, Monday 17 July
Communiqué text:
The Ministers of France, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom responsible for the civil aerospace industry held their regular meeting at the Farnborough International Air Show on Monday 17 July 2006.
The meeting was chaired by Alistair DARLING MP, Secretary of State for Trade and Industry. Also presentwere Dominique PERBEN, French Minister for Transport, Equipment, Tourism and the Sea; Georg Wilhelm ADAMOWITSCH, German State Secretary for Economics; Jose MONTILLA, Spanish Minister for Industry, Tourism and Trade; and Margaret HODGE MP, British Minister for Industry and the Regions. The industry was represented by Christian STREIFF, and the representatives of the Airbus shareholder committee, Thomas ENDERS, Louis GALLOIS and Francisco FERNANDEZ SAINZ for EADS and Mike TURNER for BAE Systems Plc. The Ministers offered their best wishes to the new management team of Airbus and EADS.
Airbus made a presentation on the status of the A380 including an explanation of the industrial issues that have led to some delay in the delivery schedule for the aircraft and the steps Airbus is taking to remedy the situation. Ministers noted this presentation and expressed their confidence in the ability of Airbus management to address these industrial issues and in the commercial success of the A380 programme.
The Ministers welcomed Airbus' response to the market and its intention to launch an all-new family of widebody aircraft. The Ministers confirmed their commitment to support the European aerospace industry. They reaffirmed their agreement to support Airbus to continue to innovate and to develop programmes in the context of international competition.
The Ministers once again expressed their desire for a negotiated solution to the current WTO dispute, but stressed the need for a balanced outcome regarding support for both current and future programmes so as to ensure a level playing field.
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what progress has been made in implementing the proposals put forward by the Action Plan on the Protection and Welfare of Animals with respect to the trading of cat and dog fur and derived products. [88208]
Mr. McCartney: Health and Consumer Protection Commissioner Kyprianou stated at the EU Agriculture and Fisheries Council on 20 February that the European Commission was planning to publish a proposal on the import of cat and dog fur within the next few months. We are currently awaiting that proposal.
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate he has made of how much cat and dog fur has been imported into Britain in the last 12 months. [88212]
Mr. McCartney: No evidence of significant imports has been brought to my attention. The UK has requested that a separate tariff code be introduced by the EU so that the level of such imports can be accurately assessed.
Mr. Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to his Department's paper of10 July 2006 on the Review of UK Assisted Areas Stage 2—The Government's response and draft assisted areas map, what average (a) level of manufacturing share of employment, (b) claimant rate of incapacity benefit, (c) employment rate and (d) level of adult skills at level 2 and above in (i) Great Britain, (ii) each ward of Scottish Borders council area, (iii) each ward of Dumfries and Galloway council area and (iv) each ward of Berwick borough council area were used to assess future eligibility for assistance; and what the (A) half a standard deviation and (B) full standard deviation (1) above and (2) below the Great Britain average are. [87356]
Margaret Hodge: The data for Great Britain, including wards in the Scottish Border council, Dumfries and Galloway council and Berwick borough council areas are available from the sources specified. The description gives a full definition of the data used in prioritising assisted area coverage in the Draft Map, including the thresholds related to the Great Britain average and standard deviation. The Department will place this information on its website, at
http://www.dti.gov.uk/regional/assisted-areas/assisted-areas-review/page24618.html.
half a standard deviation: employment rate less than 66.0 per cent.
one standard deviation: employment rate less than 62.8 per cent.
half a standard deviation: Level 2+ skills rate less than48.5 per cent.
one standard deviation: Level 2+ skills rate less than 44.8 per cent
A three-year average has been taken, using data from November 2003, November 2004 and November 2005.
half a standard deviation: IB claimant rate greater than9.7 per cent.
one standard deviation: IB claimant rate greater than 11.4 per cent.
half a standard deviation: manufacturing share of employment greater than 15.3 per cent.
one standard deviation: manufacturing share of employment greater than18.2 per cent.
Sources:
All data used are publicly available. Data can be obtained through the following websites:
NOMIS
http://www.nomisweb.co.uk/
Department of Work and Pensions
http://www.dwp. gov.uk/asd/tabtool. asp
General Register Office for Scotland (for Scottish Census data)
http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/census/censushm/index .html
Alan Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of the impact of the closure of post offices, bank branches and independent retail shops in Nottingham Southand in the East Midlands on the (a) frequency, (b) distance and (c) mode of transport of journeys by customers; and what assessment he has made ofthe impact of such closures on the level of (i) environmental emissions and (ii) traffic congestion. [79225]
Margaret Hodge: All local transport authorities are required to develop plans, termed Accessibility Strategies, to ensure that citizens have ease of access to facilities and amenities in their area. These are part of the Local Transport Plan process and Accessibility Strategies were submitted to Department for Transport as part of the second round of Local Transport Plans in March 2006.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many people have declared themselves bankrupt in each London borough since 1997. [87779]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The following table records the numbers of individual bankruptcy orders in the London Region classified according to Official Receivers’ offices from 1997-98 to 2005-06.
Figures are not separately available for each London borough.
| Bankruptcies recorded in London Region 1997-98 to 2005-06( 1, 2) | |
| Number | |
| (1
)Croydon Official Receiver’s Office is classified under
London Region for 2004-05 and 2005-06 only, when it accounted for 1,678
and 2,446 bankruptcies
respectively. (2) The latest two years figures also include Public Interest Unit (PIU) and Carousel, which together amount to 18 bankruptcies in 2004-05 and 18 in 2005-06. (3 )3,232 excl Croydon) (4) 4,253 excl Croydon) | |
Mr. Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate he has made of the number of farmers who went bankrupt in England in each of the last five years. [88737]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The closest available estimate for bankruptcies amongst self-employed farmers is that for bankruptcies falling under the category “agriculture” according to the Insolvency Trade Classification and these can be found in the following table:
| Bankruptcies in England and Wales for Agriculture, 2001 to 2005 | |
| Bankruptcy orders | |
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many members of staff in the Insolvency Service are involved in dealing with the BCCI case; and what costs the Insolvency Service has incurred to date in relation to the case. [87168]
Jim Fitzpatrick: No individual member of staff of the Insolvency Service is continuously involved in work related to the liquidation of BCCI but staff are deployed as and when required in dealing with inquiries, correspondence and receiving reports from and discussing issues with the liquidators. The cost of the involvement of Insolvency Service staff in work related to BCCI since 1991 could only be calculated as disproportionate cost.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans he has for powers for the proposed Local Better Regulation Office to inspect local authorities’ environmental health and trading standards departments. [85732]
Mr.
McCartney: The Local Better Regulation Office will have a
role overseeing and co-ordinating the work of trading standards and
environmental health. The Local Better Regulation Office will work in
partnership with local authorities and will not micro manage
environmental health and trading standards departments. Its roles will
include delivering a coordinated set of national priorities across
trading standards and environmental health services; driving up
performance standards within the wider local government performance
framework; gathering evidence and responding to the concerns of
business and local authorities about inconsistencies in the enforcement
of regulation; driving best practice to
reduce unnecessary burdens and establishing common frameworks where they
add value. The Government will make an announcement on the powers LBRO
will have later this
year.
Mr. Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when the Government’s definition of broadband was last changed; what criteria were applied to the decision; and if he will make a statement. [86135]
Margaret Hodge: We use the Office of Telecommunications’ (Ofcom) definition, published in their report “Review of the Wholesale Broadband Access Markets” of May 2004 as “higher bandwidth, always-on service, offering data rates of 128kbps and above”. This definition is used to measure take-up of the dynamic range of services available to residential and business consumers that are classed by the industry as broadband and to make comparisons with other European countries.
Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to the Answer of 3 July 2006, Official Report, column 851W, on the Business Review, by what criteria companies are expected to assess whether a contractual or supplier relationship is necessary to understand the development, performance or position of their business when deciding what to include in the Business Review under Clause 399 of the Company Law Reform Bill; and whether guidance will be issued on this matter. [87233]
Margaret
Hodge: It is for the directors to judge whether and what
information about a contractual or supplier relationship is necessary
to provide a balanced and comprehensive analysis of the development,
performance and position of the company's business consistent with the
size and complexity of the business. The Accounting Standards Board
will review its best
practice guidance to ensure that it remains up todate in light
of the outcome of the parliamentary consideration of the Bill. It is
for shareholders to hold the directors to
account.
Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to the statement by the Minister of State for Industry and the Regions to Standing Committee D on 13 July 2006, Official Report, column 703, on clause 399 of the Company Law Reform Bill, by what criteria he expects companies to assess whether a contractual or other relationship is essential to the business and therefore required to be included in the Business Review by subsection (4) of clause 399. [87234]
Margaret Hodge: Subsection (4) of clause 399 of the Company Law Reform Bill requires the directors’ Business Review to be a balanced and comprehensive analysis of the development, performance and position of the company’s business consistent with the sizeand complexity of the business. It is for the directorsto judge whether and what information about a contractual or supplier relationship is necessary to be included in the review and for the shareholders to hold the directors accountable for the information provided in their review.
Mr. Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps he is taking to promote (a) investment in industry and (b) business start-ups in South East London. [87764]
Margaret Hodge: Responsibility for the promotion of investment in industry and business start-ups in South East London (Bexley, Lewisham and Greenwich) rests primarily with partner organisations managed by the London Development Agency (LDA).
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate he has made of the contribution to the Citizens Advice Bureaux from (a) local authorities and (b) central government in each of the last five years. [88131]
Mr. McCartney: Nearly 600 Citizens Advice Bureaux operate independently as a number of separate charities each covering one, or more, operating location(s). Records are not kept centrally of their funding levels and sources.
Mr. Clapham: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will fund a clean coal integrated carbon capture demonstration project; and if he will make a statement. [87436]
Malcolm Wicks: The newly published Energy Review Report makes clear that the Government will formally launch a £10 million call during September 2006 as part of its Carbon Abatement Technologies Strategy. This call will focus on pre-commercial demonstration of key components and systems to support Carbon Abatement Technologies and will include Clean Coal and Carbon Capture and Storage technologies.
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make it his policy to include clean coal production in his future energy plans. [87927]
Malcolm Wicks: The Carbon Abatement Technologies Strategy sets out the Government's role in supporting the development of low carbon technologies for fossil fuel power generation. These low carbon technologies include clean coal among others.
Derek Wyatt: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans there are to require inclusion of information on social and environmental impact in reports for directors of public companies. [75794]
Mr.
McCartney: Under the Company Law Reform Bill, all
companies, apart from small companies, will continue to be required to
produce a Business Review, in accordance with the EU Accounts
Modernisation Directive. Quoted companies, to the extent necessary for
an understanding of the development, performance or position of their
business, will need to include the main trends and factors likely to
affect the company’s business in the future and information
about environmental matters (including the impact of the
company’s business on the environment), the company’s
employees and social and community issues. The review must include
information about any policies of the company in relation to those
matters and the effectiveness of those policies. All business
reviews must be consistent with the size and complexity of each
company’s business and, to the extent necessary for an
understanding of the company’s business, include where
appropriate analysis using key performance indicators relating to
environmental matters and employee
matters.
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussions he has had with (a) the Treasury and (b) the Cabinet Office regarding the pre-comprehensive spending review report; and if he will make a statement. [82842]
Mr. Darling: Ministers and officials have many discussions covering a wide range of issues including on spending.
Mr. Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much was spent on consultants by his Department in each year since 1997. [73170]
Jim Fitzpatrick [holding answer 23 May 2006]: Central records indicate that the cost to the Department of engaging consultants in each of the following financial years has been:
| £ million | |
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list the companies which were paid consultancy fees by his Department in 2005-06; how much each was paid; and what each of the companies was used to accomplish. [69690]
Jim Fitzpatrick: Central records indicate that the Department spent £53.6 million on consultancy services in financial year 2005-06.
Further information could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many public consultations his Department undertook in the last year for which figures are available; and what the cost was (a) in total and (b) of each consultation. [72901]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The total number of formal written consultations for the year to May 2006 is 88. Consultation exercises currently being run by the Department of Trade and Industry are published on the Department of Trade and Industry website http:www//dit.gov.uk.
Anne Milton: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will list the (a) 0800, (b) 0845 and (c) 0870 telephone numbers for the public administered by (i) his Department and (ii) agencies which report to him. [56543]
Jim Fitzpatrick: A number of “08” telephones services are administered by the Department for public use. From central records the information that can be provided on the Department's use of 0800, 0845 and 0870 telephone numbers is as follows:
| Number | Department/Agency |
| (1
)Currently discontinued and awaiting
reallocation. | |
Letter from Jeanne Spinks, dated 24 July 2006:
You asked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, if he will list the (a) 0800, (b) 0845 and (c) 0870 telephone numbers for the public administered by (i) his Department and (ii) agencies which report to him.
The Employment Tribunals Services administers a public enquiry line to answer queries about the Employment Tribunals, provide information about tribunal publications and explain how the tribunal system works. The enquiry line number is 0845 795 9775, and the minicom number is 0845 757 3722.
The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry has asked me to reply to you directly on behalf of The Insolvency Service in respect of your question (2005/3597) asking what a.) 0800, b) 0845 and c) 0870 telephone numbers for the public The Service administers.
As at 6 March 2006 the answers were as follows:
a.) 0800:
The Service does not have any 0800 numbers.
b.) 0845:
The Service currently administers the following 0845 numbers:
1. Redundancy Payments Helpline - 0845 145 0004.
2. Enforcement hotline - 0845 601 3546.
3. Online form service enquiry line - 0845 602 9848.
In addition to the above numbers our website is also available via voice access on a 0845 number - 0845 333 0323.
c.) 0870:
The Service does not have any 0870 numbers.
The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry has asked me to reply on behalf of the National Weights and Measures Laboratory (NWML) to your question regarding listing (a) 0800, (b) 0845 and (c) 0870 telephone numbers for the public administered by (i) his Department and (ii) agencies which report to him.
NWML does not administer any 0800, 0845 or 0870 numbers.
I am replying to your recently tabled Parliamentary Question 2005/3597, to the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, on behalf of Companies House, which is an Executive Agency of the DTI.
Question
To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, if he will list the (a) 0800, (b) 0845 and (c) 0870 telephone numbers for the public administered by (i) his Department and (ii) agencies with report to him. 56543.
Answer
Companies House operate the following Non-Geographical Numbers (NGN’s)
CHD Helpdesk — 0845 7573991
Contact Centre — 0870 3333636
Secure Directors Register — 0845 03032400.
Officially, the SDR number and function is hosted by CH on behalf of the DTI and due to the security considerations involved is not for public consumption.
I am responding to this parliamentary question, tabled on 02 March 2006. The telephone numbers for the public administered by the Patent Office are as follows:
Telephone; 0845 9 500 505
Minicom (text phone); 0845 9 222 250
Tom Levitt: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on his Department’s progress in fulfilling its statutory obligation as a public body of promoting the rights of disabled people. [66010]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The Disability Discrimination Act 2005 placed new duties on public authorities to promote equality for disabled people, ‘the Disability Equality Duty’.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate he has made of the net outflow in interest payments to doorstep lenders in each local authority area in the UK. [86984]
Mr. McCartney: Information of this kind on individual credit agreements is not currently collected.
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will take steps to ensure that power producers reduce carbon dioxide emissions attributable to electricity transmission and distribution losses; and if he will make a statement. [87671]
Malcolm Wicks: Power producers are strongly incentivised to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from all aspects of electricity production through the European Emissions Trading Scheme, which incentivises all installations it covers to reduce emissions in response to a carbon price. It is up to each installation to determine what measures it may take to reduce its emissions, which may include those attributable to transmission and distribution losses.
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to paragraphs 5.104 and 5.105 of the Energy Review, Cm 6887, what the reasons were for the choice of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s Nuclear Energy Agency study to illustrate the comparative carbon footprint ranking of nuclear generation against other power generation sources; and which other analyses were examined on the comparative carbon footprint of different generation sources in the Energy Review. [86095]
Malcolm Wicks [holding answer 19 July 2006]: The Energy Review considered various studies on lifetime carbon emissions, including:
Sustainable Development Commission—The Role of Nuclear in a Low Carbon Economy—Paper 2 Reducing CO2 Emissions—Nuclear and the Alternatives (2006)
Japan Central Research Institute (1996)
Sweden, Vattenfall (1999 and 2000)
Finland, A Kivisto
Germany, Institute for Applied Ecology (1997)
Storm van Leeuven and Smith (SLS) (2001 to 2005)
Torness—a study for BE by AEA Technology (2005)
EC ExternE (2003)
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment was made of the potential vulnerability of existing licensed nuclear sites to (a) coastal erosion and (b) inundation in the energy review. [86926]
Malcolm Wicks: Any new nuclear power stations would be proposed, developed, constructed and operated by the private sector. Industry has indicated that the most viable sites are likely to be adjacent to existing sites. Any developers will need to manage the possible risks of coastal erosion and flooding through active flood management plans, which must be approved by the safety regulator. Government committed in the energy review report to undertake a strategic siting assessment that would assist developers in identifying the most suitable sites for nuclear power stations.
Mr. Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps his Department has taken to increase enterprise in the West Suffolk constituency since 1997. [85501]
Margaret Hodge: Through the Government office for the East of England and the East of England development agency (BEDA) the Department has made considerable progress in increasing enterprise across the region.
A total of £400,000 of funding has been raised for West Suffolk companies since 1997.
There has also been Community investment of circa £2.3 million since 1997 which includes:
Sudbury Community Energy SRB project—£1,087,700
Working Together Suffolk Rural (County-wide)—£268,864
Foundation East (formally Suffolk Regeneration Trust)—£814,000
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps the Government is taking to encourage enterprise among people agedover 30. [85919]
Margaret Hodge: The Government are pursuing a range of programmes to encourage enterprise in the over 30s.
Providing the information, advice and support needed for entrepreneurs to start, maintain and grow a business through the Business Link service in England, and its counterparts in the Devolved Administrations.
Providing a targeted programme of support through the New Deal to suitable unemployed people, offering advice and training from a specialist provider.
Pump priming the Prince’s Initiative for Mature Enterprise (PRIME) with revenue and loan guarantee support through the DTI’s Phoenix Fund. This has supported entrepreneurial activity amongst over 50’s across the country.
Creating a Taskforce on Women’s Enterprise to accelerate the development of women’s enterprise. Regional Development Agencies are piloting Women's Enterprise Units to trial different approaches to supporting the start-up and growth of women-owned businesses.
Supporting a programme of activity led by the Ethnic Minority Business Forum to promote enterprise amongst ethnic minority groups. A three-year action plan was published in December 2005.
Running ‘Enterprising Britain’, an annual national competition to find the country’s most enterprising city, town, place or area, which showcases what is being done to support a stronger, more dynamic enterprise culture across the UK.
Increasing the resources available to RDAs, all of whom are tasked with encouraging enterprise, with targets for the number of new businesses created and surviving in their regions.
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many people are employed in each of the (a) local and (b) sectoral enterprise campaigns established by Enterprise Insight; when the recruitment process for these will be completed; what costs have been incurred in recruiting people for these posts; and when each campaign will be fully operational. [85680]
Margaret Hodge: All the Local and Sectoral Enterprise Campaign Hubs are expected to be fully functional by the end of September 2006.
Expenditure incurred to date on the recruitment for the Local and Sectoral Hubs is £49,284.
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry pursuant to his Answer of 17 July 2006, Official Report, column 135W, on Enterprise Insight, what targets have been set for Enterprise Week 2006; what funding was provided for Enterprise Insight in (a) 2005-06 and (b) 2004-05; and what funding has been allocated for (i) 2007-08 and (ii) 2008-09. [87375]
Margaret Hodge: Targets for Enterprise Insight in relation to Enterprise Week 2006 have been agreed as follows:
Number of events in Enterprise Week 2006—3,000;
Number of Enterprise Week 2006 participants—500,000;
Number of teams taking part in the 2006 ‘Make Your Mark’ Challenge—4,000;
Number of entries to the 2006 Enterprising Young Brits —2,000;
Editorial value of media coverage—£6.5million;
Number of TV partners on board—8.
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what timetable has been set for the delivery of the EU Convergence Funding programme to Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly between 2007 and 2013. [87610]
Margaret Hodge: The EU Institutions are currently finalising a new package of legislation to govern future Structural Funds Programmes for the 2007-13 financial period. All of the new legislation is expected to come into force in the autumn.
Mr. Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the cost was to his Department of implementing and administering EU directives, regulations and policies decided in 2005-06. [86751]
Mr. McCartney: The Department hold no records centrally relating to the origin of regulations and policies. The length of development, negotiation and implementation varies enormously from policy to policy and it would be hard to obtain a meaningful figure. Deriving such figures would incur a disproportionate cost. All proposals, which impact on business, charities or the voluntary sector, require a regulatory impact assessment (RIA) which includes details of the costs, benefits and risks of the proposal. Costs to Government including enforcement costs are included in the RIA. Copies of final RIAs are placed in the Libraries of the House.
Mr. Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many full-time equivalent staff are employed in his Department to implement and administer EU directives, regulations and policies. [86753]
Mr. McCartney: The Department does not record the cost or the number of staff required for negotiating and implementing regulatory directives, regulations and policies emanating from Europe.
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many representations his Department has received on the trading relationships through the food supply chain from primary producers to supermarkets in each of the last three years. [87517]
Mr.
McCartney: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State,
myself, our predecessors and DTI officials have received a significant
number of representations,
including from the Association of Convenience Stores, the British Retail
Consortium, supplier representatives, the Independent Retailers
Association, the National Consumer Council, individual members of the
public, interested MPs and the major
supermarkets.
Figures for the number of representations are not held centrally.
Mr. Clapham: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much on average domestic gas and electricity bills have increased in real terms between the first quarter of 2003 and the most recent quarter for which information is available. [87435]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The information is as follows:
Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment his Department has made of the fuel supply mix options for the power generation sector that would be available should a policy decision be taken not to enable new nuclear plants to be built. [82095]
Malcolm Wicks: In its Energy Review Report, published on 11 July, the Government concluded that, over the next few years, new investment in power generation is likely to be in renewables and gas-fired power stations. Longer term there are other low carbon forms of generation that can contribute to meeting our goals. In particular, the Government concluded that new nuclear power stations could make a significant contribution to meeting our energy policy goals. It will be for the power sector to initiate, fund, construct and operate new power generation and to meet all associated costs.
Mr. Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when he will reply to the letter of 18 April 2006 from the hon. Member for Billericay about sofas imported from eastern Europe. [70339]
Mr. Darling [holding answer 12 May 2006]: A response to this letter was sent on 24 May.
Mr. Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how much he expects will be distributed to companies under grant schemes administered by the Department in 2006-07. [86752]
Margaret Hodge: The Department of Trade and Industry expects to distribute £314 million to companies under the grant schemes for 2006-07.
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what work his Department sponsors into the development of local distributed networks for heat delivery. [87634]
Malcolm Wicks: The DTI co-chairs with Ofgem the Electricity Networks Strategy Group. This is a body made up of industry representatives who advise on how the networks can help deliver energy goals. Work programmes, largely funded by the DTI, research a variety of issues. Previous work has addressed barriers which prevented distributed generation connecting to the network. This has helped remove barriers to the development of combined heat and power.
Mr. Redwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the change in the number of jobs in (a) ceramics, (b) glass, (c) paper and (d) other high energy using industries was in the last year for which figures are available. [86756]
Jim Fitzpatrick: Changes in the average yearly employment between 2003 and 2004 for the 15 highest energy using production industry groups (3-digit Standard Industrial Classification level, except for construction) in terms of consumption of tonnes of oil equivalents are shown in the table. Information is included for the ceramics production industry groups, which are not high energy using industries applying this definition.
| UK energy consumption | Average yearly employment, UK | ||||
| 2003 (Thousand) | 2003 (Thousand) | 2004 (Thousand) | Thousand | Percentage | |
Manufacture of pharmaceuticals, medicinal chemicals and botanical products | |||||
| (1)
Employment information provided for these industries is for the 2-digit
manufacture of coke, refined petroleum products and nuclear fuel, as
information at the 3-digit industry group level has been suppressed to
avoid
disclosure. Sources: 1. DTI UK energy industrial consumption tables. 2. ONS Annual Business Inquiry. | |||||
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on what date his most recent assessment of the Home Computer Initiative scheme was passed to the Treasury; and if he will place a copy in the Library. [64380]
Mr. Darling: [holding answer 19 April 2006]: I would like to apologise to the hon. Member for the delay in replying to the matter raised. In response to his query I can confirm that the DTI have regular discussions with the Treasury on budgetary initiatives. We do not publish details of these for reasons of confidentiality.
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of the potential for development of low-head hydro power in (a) the United Kingdom and (b) Wales in the Energy Review. [87632]
Malcolm
Wicks: In 1987 the then Department of Energy commissioned
the University of Salford to
undertake a comprehensive assessment of the economic potential for
small-scale hydro-electric generation throughout the
UK.
John Penrose: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on what dates communication between his Department and Treasury Counsel took place on the subject of Appeal No. EA/2005/0023 to the Information Tribunal, broken down by type of communication. [72393]
Jim Fitzpatrick: I can neither confirm nor deny whether communication of any type took place between the Department and Treasury Counsel in relation to the Appeal No. EA/2005/0023 to the Information Tribunal. There is a public interest that decisions taken by government are taken in a fully informed legal context, to ensure good decision-making. Disclosure of whether the Department has sought legal advice has a significant potential to prejudice the government's ability to defend its legal interests.
Mr. Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the value was of each IT contract awarded by his Department in each of the last five years; and who the contractor was in each case. [88977]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The Department has a main information technology contract which is a private finance initiative (PFI) agreement with Fujitsu Services and has been in place for more than five years. The Department has also recently awarded a competed services framework arrangement to six other suppliers and this will enable an element of additional competition for future IT projects. To-date no significant contracts have been awarded to these suppliers.
| £ million | |
Mr. Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry which IT contracts awarded by his Department in each of the last five years have been abandoned; and what the value was in each case. [88978]
Jim Fitzpatrick: During the last five years the Department has not abandoned any IT contracts awarded during that period. The Department has a main information technology contract which is a private finance initiative (PFI) agreement with Fujitsu Services and has been in place for more than five years. The Department has also recently awarded a competed services framework arrangement to six other suppliers but to-date no significant contracts have been awarded to these suppliers.
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of the adequacy of investment in local distribution grids by the distribution network operators; and if he will make a statement. [86936]
Malcolm Wicks: Price controls for the period 2005-10, which set the operational and capital expenditure for the 14 electricity distribution networks, were agreed between the regulator (Ofgem) and the distribution network operators in January 2005. Ofgem has to allow the networks sufficient revenue to invest in their businesses to deliver licence conditions, which include having safe and reliable networks. At the same time, Ofgem seeks to keep costs down for consumers. The reliability of the distribution networks in Britain has improved, with power cuts relating to underlying performance (i.e. taking out major storms) down by16 per cent. since performance incentives were introduced in 2002.
Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the total value is of household grants applied for since the start of the Low Carbon Buildings programme. [78486]
Malcolm Wicks: The total value of household grants applied for since the start of the Low Carbon Buildings programme is £1,670,730. This figure represents applications received some of which will not go forward. Actual grants offered up to 7 July 2006 is £527,763.
Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when his Department expects the next revision to the youth rate of the national minimum wage; what representations he has received on this matter; and what plans he has to make representations on this matter. [87126]
Jim Fitzpatrick: In line with the recommendationof the Low Pay Commission, on 1 October the development rate for 16-17 year olds will increase to £3.30 an hour.
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what trade-related (a) missions he plans to undertake and (b) meetings he plans to hold during the parliamentary recess. [86765]
Mr. McCartney: My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry plans to visit Brazil in September, accompanied by a business delegation. During the recess he will continue to hold discussions on trade, investment and economic affairs, including with business, other non-governmental organisations, as well as European Union and non-European Union contacts, as necessary.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many times his ministerial office has been decorated in each of the last five years. [87643]
Jim Fitzpatrick: During this period the walls of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State’s office were repainted in 2005.
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry on how many occasions (a) civil servants and (b) special advisors in his Department have stayed overnight in (i) five star, (ii) four star and (iii) three star hotels in each of the last three years. [69001]
Jim Fitzpatrick: This information is not readily available and can be obtained only at disproportionate costs.
David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the total cost was of overnight accommodation for (a) civil servants and (b) special advisers in his Department staying overnight in (i) mainland Great Britain, (ii) Northern Ireland, (iii) the Republic of Ireland and (iv) other countries in each of the last three years. [69002]
Jim Fitzpatrick: Information on overnight accommodation broken down as requested is not available and could be made available only at disproportionate cost. The following table shows the total expenditure on hotel accommodation for both DTI officials and Ministers, split between the UK and overseas, in the last three years.
| Expenditure on overnight accommodation for DTI Ministers and officials | ||
| £ | ||
| Financial year | UK hotels | Hotel overseas |
John Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what account he takes of different levels of forecast emissions of carbon dioxide in determining planning applications for new power stations. [86129]
Malcolm Wicks: There are no set limits for emissions of carbon dioxide when considering power station applications. However the Environmental Impact Assessment which accompanies an application includes a statement on how the proposal contributes to meeting the Government’s target to reduce emissions of gases which contribute to global warming and acid rain. In addition, and before any consent is granted, we need confirmation from the Environment Agency that the impact of emissions would not be detrimental to the health of people and flora and fauna.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether the Nuclear Waste Management Organisation plan to replace NIREX will be independent of the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority; and if he will make a statement. [86363]
Ian Pearson: I have been asked to reply.
Mrs.
Curtis-Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State
for Trade and Industry pursuant to the answer of
26 June 2006, Official Report, columns 75-76W, on nuclear power,
what nuclear decommissioning activity has been undertaken since 1 April
2005; and at what site the clean-up activity took place.
[85962]
Malcolm Wicks: Details of the decommissioning activity carried out since 1 April 2005 will be set out in the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority's (NDA) Annual Report and Accounts for 2005-06. The accounts are currently being finalised and audited. They will be published and laid in the House in due course after they have been signed off by the Comptroller and Auditor General. Full details of all the NDA's activities can be found on its website:
www.nda.gov.uk
Mr. Jack: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what reports his Department has received which identify sites suitable for building nuclear power stations in addition to those presently in service. [86711]
Malcolm Wicks: The Department has received no such reports identifying new potential sites for nuclear power stations.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will bring forward legislation to amend the Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971 to provide for an additional bank holiday on the last Monday in October each year; what recent representations he has received calling for an additional bank holiday; and if he will make a statement. [87109]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The Government receive a variety of suggestions for new or different bank holidays. The present pattern of bank holidays is well established and accepted, and we have no current plans to change the arrangements.
Mr. Gauke: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what administrative functions for which his Department is responsible are outsourced overseas; and what assessment he has made of the merits of outsourcing further such functions overseas. [81557]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The Department has not outsourced any of its administrative functions overseas nor are there currently any plans in place to do so.
Dr. Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what account he has taken of increased casework caused by high levels of personal debt in the allocation of funding for donations to the Citizens Advice Bureaux by his Department. [88130]
Mr. McCartney: The Citizens Advice Bureaux have been very successful in bidding for support under the £45 million Financial Inclusion Fund for debt advice. They have led 10 of the 16 selected advice-giving projects that have resulted in around £30 million of funds being granted to them. Their casework evidence was a crucial factor in deciding this allocation.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what conditions were applied to the grant offer made to Peugeot in November for the manufacture of the 207 at Ryton; and what reasons were given to his Department for the refusal of the grant. [86206]
Margaret Hodge: The terms and conditions of the £14.4 million Regional Selective Assistance grant offered to Peugeot for the manufacture of the 207 model at Ryton are confidential between the Government and Peugeot. The company did not take up the offer as they decided not to proceed with the project.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what role (a) he and (b) ministers in his Department play in planning decisions for (i) new power plants and (ii) wind turbines. [86851]
Malcolm Wicks: Under the specialised regime of section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989 onshore power stations, however fuelled, over 50 MW and offshore renewable power stations over 1 MW, in England and Wales fall to the Secretary of State to determine. Onshore power station proposals of 50 MW or less are dealt with under the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 by local planning authorities and Ministers in this Department have no role to play in deciding those applications.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many people visited each of the post offices in Chorley constituency using the Post Office card account to withdraw (a) benefit and (b) pensions in the last 12 months. [87433]
Jim Fitzpatrick: I understand from Post Office Ltd. (POL) that the information is not available in the format requested. POL cannot provide a breakdown of which benefits customers are withdrawing cash for as they may have a range of benefits paid into a Post Office card account (POCA) and then withdraw cash from any Post Office branch via their POCA. Also, they do not capture information on which customers are making visits or their withdrawal pattern.
Mr. Duncan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when he will publish a consultation paper on banding the Renewables Obligation, as announced in the Energy Review Report. [87614]
Jim Fitzpatrick: The Government intend to publish the consultation document on the banding of the Renewables Obligation in the autumn this year.
Mr. Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the outcome has been of the project for Renewable Energy Systems at Beaufort Court; how much public money was involved in the project; and if he will make a statement. [75377]
Malcolm Wicks: Renewable Energy System’s development at Beaufort Court has not received any financing from UK Government but has, according to the website (http://www.beaufortcourt.com), received funding from the European Union through the EC framework 5 programme
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many complaints from customers were received by the Royal Mail (a) nationally and (b) in the York postal area (i) in 2005-06 and (ii) each of the previous four years; and whether it is the Government's policy that the Royal Mail should continue to publish information about complaints received in each post code area. [87050]
Jim Fitzpatrick: This is an operational matter for Royal Mail. Adam Crozier, the Chief Executive of Royal Mail has been asked to reply direct to the hon. Member.
Mr.
Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for
Trade and Industry what recent representations he has made
to his Russian counterpart regarding security of British investments in
Russia.
[85087]
Mr. McCartney: Senior officials have regular contact with the Russians on investment questions, including the importance of legal and administrative arrangements which secure and promote British investment in Russia. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has not yet had the opportunity personally to meet his Russian counterparts but investment issues will form part of the discussion when he does.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent meetings he has held with representatives of science centres to discuss their future role and funding. [87026]
Jim Fitzpatrick: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given by my hon. Friend the Minister for Higher Education and Lifelong Learning (Bill Rammell) on 20 July 2006, Official Report, columns 651-52W.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many small businesses operated in (a) Brent, East and (b) Brent in each year since 1997. [87423]
Margaret Hodge: Estimates of the total number of small businesses are only available at a regional level. However, figures for the number of VAT registered businesses are available at the local level. Latest data on the stock of VAT registered businesses at the end of each year since 1997 are shown in the following table for (a) Brent, East constituency and (b) the London borough of Brent.
| End year stock of VAT registered businesses, 1997-2004( 1) | ||||||||
| 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | |
| (1
)VAT registration and de-registration data are not available by
size of business. However, in Brent borough 98 per cent. of the total
stock of VAT registered businesses are small (0-49
employees). Sources: Business Start-ups and Closures: VAT Registrations and De-registrations 1994-2004, Small Business Service, available from the Library of the House and also at http://WWW.sbs.gov.uk/vats Office for National Statistics, UK Business: Activity, Size and Location—2005, available from http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=933 | ||||||||
Danny
Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for
Trade and Industry how many working days were lost to his Department
and its executive agencies in each
year since 1997 due to staff absenteeism, expressed as the average
annual number of absent days per employee; and what the estimated total
cost to the Department and its agencies of absenteeism was in each
year.
[78082]
Mr. Darling [holding answer 19 June 2006]: The average annual number of absent days per DTI (core DTI/HQ) employee in each year since 2000 is:
| Headcount | Full-time equivalent | |
| £ | |
The DTI does not hold the sick absence data for earlier than 2000.
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what recent discussions he has had with (a) the Competition Commission, (b) the Office of Fair Trading and (c) the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on the supermarket code of practice. [87518]
Mr. McCartney: My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State and Ministers meet with the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), Competition Commission (CC) and colleagues at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on a regular basis to discuss topics of mutual interest.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what discussion took place between his Department and the BBC about the decision not to renew the contract for renewal and purchase of television licences supplied at post offices. [87428]
Jim Fitzpatrick: None. The decision was a commercial one made by the BBC as the television licensing authority looking to the interests of licence fee payers and seeking to ensure the best deal for the public in this capacity.
Mr. Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many households have signed up to the Telephone Preference Service (TPS); and how many householders live in premises that are protected by TPS regulations by virtue of a previous occupant having registered with the service. [75598]
Margaret Hodge: The information is as follows:
Mr. Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many individuals have registered with the Telephone Preference Service on more than one occasion. [75600]
Margaret Hodge: The Direct Marketing Association runs the Telephone Preference Service (TPS) scheme on behalf of the Office of Communications and the Information Commissioner’s Office has responsibility for enforcement. The TPS estimates that currently 833,825 consumers have registered the same number on more than one occasion with them. It should be noted that duplicate numbers are not present on the TPS register as they are removed when the TPS carries out their checks to update their records.
Mr. Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many complaints have been made against the 10 companies breaching Telephone Preference Service regulations most frequently in the last 12 months. [75701]
Margaret
Hodge: The Direct Marketing Association runs the Telephone
Preference Service (TPS) scheme on behalf of the Office of
Communications and the Information Commissioner's Office has
responsibility for enforcement. The TPS records indicate that the total
number of complaints made against the top 10
companies for 2005 was 7,701. It should be noted that
this figure includes complaints where consumers may not have been
registered with the TPS or had not allowed the necessary 28 days to
elapse before their registration took
effect.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will make a statement on the operation of the Trade Descriptions (Place of Production) (Marking) Order 1988; how many (a) individuals and (b) companies have been prosecuted under this Order and the Trade Descriptions Act 1968 in each year since 1989; and what recent representations he has received on the operation of this Order. [82891]
Mr. McCartney: According to information obtained from the Office of Fair Trading (OFT), the number of prosecutions notified to them by Trading Standards Services under the Trade Descriptions Act 1968 in each year since 1989 are:
| Individuals | Companies | Total | |
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what percentage of UK trade was with (a) Romania and (b) Bulgaria in the latest period for which figures are available. [84722]
Mr. McCartney: The percentage of total UK trade with Romania in 2005 was 0.3 per cent. The percentage of total UK trade with Bulgaria in 2005 was 0.08 per cent.
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment he has made of how UK trade with (a) Romania and (b) Bulgaria will develop once those nations have joined the European Union. [84723]
Mr. McCartney: Assessments carried out by United Kingdom Trade and Investment conclude that a growing level of interest in Bulgaria and Romania from UK business in the lead up to EU membership will increase yet further on accession because of the opportunities it affords. Furthermore EU accession in itself is only one of the catalysts for increased opportunity. Growing economic prosperity, the development of a market economy and rising standards of living will contribute to this process as well and are already well under way in thee countries.
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many new businesses were registered for VAT in each region in each year since 2001; and if he will make a statement. [86949]
Margaret Hodge: The latest available information on VAT registrations by region is published in “VAT Registrations UK, Country, Government Office Region, County, District and Constituency 1994-2004”, a copy of which is available in the Libraries of the House.
Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what the UK Government’s position is on including services and trade facilitation in the Doha Round of World Trade Organisation negotiations. [81574]
Mr. McCartney: The UK remains strongly committed to ensuring an ambitious and pro-development outcome to the Doha Round that provides real benefits to developing countries and an overall stimulus to world trade in goods and services. The inclusion of services and trade facilitation in the Doha Ministerial Declaration that launched the Round in 2001 was welcomed by the UK Government. Both are important elements of the ambitious and balanced final agreement that is our objective for these negotiations, towards which we continue to work.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what plans he has to re-organise the system of training initiatives for young people; and what the rationale was behind launching Great Expectations. [76015]
Margaret Hodge: There are no plans in England to reorganise training for young people. The successful apprenticeships programme remains the primary vocational route for young people into skilled jobs.
It is included by Careers Scotland in their portfolio of schemes on offer in Scotland.
Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what information his Department holds on (a) publicly owned and (b) privately owned companies which are trading with Zimbabwe. [87231]
Mr. McCartney: Data is not available on which UK companies are trading with Zimbabwe. Information on the main exports and imports by product was provided in response to Parliamentary Question: 2005/5083.
Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations have been made to his Department regarding the actions of UK companies in Zimbabwe. [87232]
Mr. McCartney: As stated in my reply of 17 July 2006, Official Report, columns 148-150W there are no sanctions or embargoes against British companies doing business in Zimbabwe.
We do not maintain a separate record of representations made to this Department on Zimbabwe.
Roger Berry: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many disabled staff in his Department received support through the Access to Work scheme (a) in each of the last five years and (b) in 2006-07. [82234]
John Healey: Applications for support through the Access to Work Scheme, made via the Treasury’s diversity team are in the following table:
| Applications to Access to Work Scheme | |
| (1
)Data not available (2) Records on applications to the Access to Work Scheme were kept from late 2003 onwards as the Treasury moved towards implementing a central reasonable adjustments budget (April 2004) and a more streamlined process for putting in place reasonable adjustments for its employees. | |
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Chancellor ofthe Exchequer what advertising campaigns the Department ran between 2000 and June 2004; and what the (a) date and (b) cost was of each. [87053]
John Healey: I refer to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam (Mr. Burstow) and the hon. Member for Monmouth (David T.C. Davies) on6 July 2005, Official Report, column 433W.
Lynne Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the consistency with which different strengths of alcohol are taxed. [87550]
John Healey: There are historic disparities in the rate at which different alcohol products are taxed. Since 1998, Government policy has been to seek a fairer balance of taxation between different alcohol products.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer who the members of the group examining the provision of information and support on energy efficiency to business chaired by the Financial Secretary and Mr. Richard Ellis are; and when it has met. [87453]
John Healey: Budget 2006 announced that the Financial Secretary and Richard Ellis would co-chair a group to examine how best to provide information and support to business on energy efficiency. This group met recently. The organisations represented at this meeting were: the Carbon Trust, the CBI, the EEF, the British Chambers of Commerce and the Federation of Small Businesses.
Chris Grayling: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what meetings (a) he and (b) Ministers in his Department have held with directors and senior executives of (i) Capita Group plc and (ii) its subsidiaries since 1 January 2004; and whether (A) Capita Group plc and (B) its subsidiaries have provided input (1) in writing and (2) in person to policy discussions in his Department since 1 January 2004. [61062]
John Healey: As part of the normal process of contact with business, Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide range of individuals and organisations. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government’s usual practice to provide details of all such meetings. Treasury meetings are conducted in accordance with the Ministerial Code and the Civil Service Code, as appropriate.
James
Brokenshire: To ask the Chancellor of the
Exchequer (1) what the value of contracts held by his
Department with (a) Capita plc and (b) its subsidiaries
was in the last three financial years;
[61459]
John Healey: Any consultant engaged by a Department needs to pass through a rigorous and transparent procurement process in line with EU procurement directives.
There are no staff seconded by Capita or its subsidiaries to the Treasury or its agencies.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many and what proportion of people live in caravan parks in each local authority area in England and Wales in descending order according to percentage of the population resident in such parks. [88287]
John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 24 July 2006:
I am replying as National Statistician and Registrar General for England and Wales to your recent question asking the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many and what proportion of people live in caravan parks in each local authority area in England and Wales in descending order according to percentage of the population resident in that way. (88287)
The nearest information available from the 2001 census is accommodation type which includes a category for “caravans or other mobile or temporary structures”. This includes caravans that are not in parks and other mobile structures such as boats. The data was published in table S050 in the “Census 2001 National report for England and Wales pt 1” which is available in the House of Commons library. However for convenience the relevant columns have been extracted and placed separately in the House of Commons library.
Mr. Swire: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when (a) Ministers and (b) officials in his Department have held meetings in the last 12 months with casino operators interested in securing licences under the Gambling Act 2005; where each meeting took place; and what was discussed. [83364]
John Healey: Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide range of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy analysis, development and delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government’s practice to provide details of all such meetings.
Mr. Yeo: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what data are collected by the Government related to (a) the acquisition of companies financed by the (i) exchange and (ii) issue of shares and (b) the financial performance of such companies, with particular reference to patterns of investment by them. [87131]
Ed Balls: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking what data is collected by the Government related to (a) the acquisition of companies financed by the (i) exchange and (ii) issue of shares and (b) the financial performance of such companies, with particular reference to patterns of investment by them. (87131) The data requested are not available. However, ONS publish data on acquisitions in the UK by UK companies that are funded by share issues and exchanges. Table 9 of the ONS Mergers and Acquisitions First Release provides a breakdown of this information. Information is not collected on whether the shares involved are existing shares or new issues of shares.
This can be found using the following weblink:
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=72&Pos=1&ColRank=1&Rank=208
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he plans to collect centrally information on consultancy firms hired by Government Departments. [88201]
John Healey: OGC does not hold central information on public sector spend on consultancy and currently there are no plans to start to do so.
Joan Walley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) if he will ask the Gowers Intellectual Property review team to include within its terms of reference copyright issues affecting the sports sector; [84261]
John Healey: Mr. Andrew Gowers has been asked to conduct an independent review into the intellectual property system, to ensure it is fit for the digital age. The published terms of reference for the review are as follows:
The review will provide an analysis of the performance of the UK IP system, including inter alia,
the way in which Government administers the awarding of IP and their support to consumers and business;
how well businesses are able to negotiate the complexity and expense of the copyright and patent system, including copyright and patent licensing arrangements, litigation and enforcement; and
whether the current technical and legal IP infringement framework reflects the digital environment, and whether provisions for ‘fair use’ by citizens are reasonable.
Anne Main: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what advice he has given the Home Secretary on managing complex computer databases. [82812]
Mr. Timms: The Office of Government Commerce, through its Gateway Review process, advises all Departments on acquisition and procurement projects.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what public spending on defence was in each year since 1997 in (a) cash terms, (b) at 2006 prices and (c) as a percentage of gross domestic product. [86990]
Mr. Timms: Final outturn figures for defence spending in financial years 1997-98 to 2004-05, expressed in terms of 2004-05 prices, and as a percentage of GDP, can be found in Public Expenditure Statistical Analysis 2006, tables 3.2 and 3.4 respectively. GDP deflators to adjust this data to 2005-06 prices are available on the Treasury website at:
http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/media/255/F4/gapdeflators_300606.xls
Mr. Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much was spent on hotels (a) in the UK and (b) abroad by his Department’s employees in the last 12 months. [83498]
John Healey: I refer to the answer I gave to the hon. Member for Upper Bann (David Simpson) on 24 May 2006, Official Report, column 1850W.
Mr. Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much was spent on heating his Department’s buildings in London in each year since 1997. [83505]
John Healey: The Treasury’s heating is provided by the Whitehall District Heating System operated by OGCbuying solutions. The Whitehall District Heating System also supplies the Treasury’s hot water except in the summer months. The total cost of the Treasury’s use of the system since 2002-03 is set out in the following table. Figures for years prior to 2002-03 could be provided only at disproportionate cost due to a change in accounting system in that year.
| £000 | |
Mr. Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department spent on artwork in each year since 1997. [83507]
John Healey: There was no spending by the Treasury on works of art in 2005-06. In relation to previous years, I refer to the answers given to the hon. Member for Lewes (Norman Baker) on 8 December 2003, Official Report, column 333W, and to the hon. Member for Monmouth (David T.C. Davies) on 1 November 2005, Official Report, column 984W.
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what recent estimate he has made of the total amount spent in a year on lighting his Department’s buildings in London. [83587]
Mr. Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much his Department spent on electricity use in each year since 2003-04. [83776]
John Healey: I refer to the answer given to the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable) on 10 October 2005, Official Report, column 332W. Spending by the Treasury on electricity in 2005-06 was £431,000.
Disaggregated figures for lighting, separate from other electricity use, are not available.
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how much (a) his Department and (b) agencies of his Department spent on water and sewage services in each year since 2003-04. [83664]
John Healey: I refer to the answer given to the hon. Member for Twickenham (Dr. Cable) on 10 October 2005, Official Report, column 332W. Spending by the Treasury and its agencies in 2005-06 was as follows.
| 2005-06 | Spending (£) |
| (1)
Information not yet available. (2) DMO costs are
included in the service charge and disaggregated data for water and
sewerage services is unavailable. (3) NS&I occupy
a MOTO agreement with HMRC. Costs are included in the facilities charge
and disaggregated data for water and sewerage services is
unavailable. | |
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what guidance he has issued to employees in his Department on (a) saving water, (b) conserving heat and (c) reducing electricity consumption. [83573]
John Healey: Treasury employees are encouraged to reduce utility consumption and wastage of resources routinely. The department works closely with contractors and staff to improve the efficient use of the building and workplace.
David Simpson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 28 June 2006, Official Report, column 414W, on sickness absence, to what he attributes the rise in the number of staff with (a) two, (b) three, (c) four and (d) five or more periods of sickness absence of less than five days in each of the last three years. [84075]
John Healey: Staff absenteeism recorded as sickness absence in each year since 1997 is contained in Cabinet Office publication of an annual report “Analysis of Sickness Absence in the Civil Service”. This report gives a detailed analysis of the civil service data, including patterns, frequency and reasons for absence.
This is available in the Library and on the civil service website at:
http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/management/occupational_health/publications/index.asp.
Mr. Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many (a) sprinklers and (b) irrigation systems are used by (i) his Department and (ii) other departments for which he is responsible in London. [83499]
John Healey: There are no sprinklers and one irrigation system in the Treasury building at 1 Horse Guards Road. Information on other London based Departments is not held centrally and could be produced only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what action he plans to take over the next month to encourage revival of the Doha round of trade talks. [86766]
John Healey: As the Chancellor set out in his Mansion House speech on 21 June, the most powerful pro-globalisation signal we can send is to make possible the increase in world trade that an ambitious WTO settlement would bring.
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many dual flush toilets there are in his Department. [83578]
John Healey: All of the 144 toilets in the Treasury building at 1 Horse Guards Road have a dual flush facility.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which of the proposals tabled by the UK presidency at the December ECOFIN meeting regarding the next steps towards better European regulation have been implemented by (a) the UK and (b) other member states. [88098]
Ed Balls: At the December 2005 ECOFIN, the UK, Austria and Finland issued a joint-presidency discussion paper setting out areas for future work by the Commission working together with member states to improve the regulatory framework in Europe. Since December progress has been made in a number of areas. The Commission has been piloting administrative burden measurement and plans to identify priority areas for action and options for setting targets to reduce administrative costs by the end of the year, enabling concrete proposals to be made next year. The Commission is also reviewing its Impact Assessment procedures and its processes for consulting with stakeholders and is due to report on progress on its simplification plan in the autumn.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the reference to the high-level group in paragraph 3.103 of HC 968, the Economic and Fiscal Strategy Report and Financial Statement and Budget Report, March 2006, who the members of the group are; on what dates it has met; when it will announce a strategy; and if he will place in the Library the minutes of its meetings. [87532]
Ed Balls: The Treasury will announce publicly the composition of the high-level group when it meets for the first time in the autumn, following a series of meetings at official level which have been under way since the spring. The Treasury will make an announcement on the strategy before the end of the year.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether (a) his Department and (b) the Financial Services Authority has assessed the merits of setting up a stand-alone financial consumer education initiative. [87386]
Ed Balls: The Financial Services Authority (FSA), in partnership with the Government, the financial services industry and voluntary organisations, leads the national strategy for financial capability.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has for changes in spending on financial consumer education in connection with his target to educate all children in financial matters. [87387]
Ed
Balls: The Financial Services Authority (FSA), in
partnership with the Government, the financial services industry and
voluntary organisations leads the national strategy for financial
capability. One of the strands of the national
strategy—“Learning Money Matters”—will
provide schools with a comprehensive one-stop shop for help, support
and advice to help them deliver effective personal finance education to
their pupils. Learning Money Matters will be delivered by pfeg (the
Personal Finance Education Group), an independent charity that works
with schools to
promote personal finance education for young people.
The target is to reach 1.8 million children in 4,000 schools by 2010-11
to improve their financial knowledge, understanding and
confidence.
Mr. Walker: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what progress the Financial Services Authority has made in enforcing testable business continuity planning among its members; and if he will make a statement. [87906]
Ed Balls: The UK financial authorities (HM Treasury, Bank of England and FSA) work together closely to ensure that the financial sector is prepared for and able to respond to disruptive events. The FSA has responsibility for ensuring that the firms it regulates have business continuity plans in place, and provides the lead for the authorities in the areas of benchmarking and testing.
Mr. Redwood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to his oral answer to the hon. Members for Bosworth and Livingston of 13 July 2006, Official Report, column 1470, on the Fundamental Savings review, whether trading enterprises owned by the public sector will be sold off in the planned sale of assets. [86755]
Mr. Timms: The 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) will take forward the Government’s objective of realising £30 billion of asset disposals by 2010, and will examine options for disposing of other public assets, including public corporations and trading funds.
Mr. Redwood: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the change has been in staff numbers in Departments subject to Gershon review reduction. [86754]
Mr. Timms: As announced in “Releasing Resources to meet the challenges ahead: value for money in the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review”, by the end of March 2006 departments had delivered more than half of the 84,000 workforce reductions planned by 2007-08 with 45,547 gross reductions.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment (a) his Department and (b) the Bank of England has made of the potential effect of home information packs on the economy. [86827]
John Healey: The Department for Communities and Local Government recently published an assessment of the impact of Home Information Packs in a regulatory impact assessment accompanying regulations made under Part 5 of the Housing Act 2004. This assessment will be updated in the light of the findings of a baseline study of the home buying and selling process reporting later this year, information obtained during the dry-run of Home Information Packs, other research commissioned by the Department for Communities and Local Government, and in consultation with HM Treasury and Bank of England.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many and what percentage of families with three or more children in which neither parent works lived in each county in (a) Wales, (b) Scotland, (c) England and (d) Northern Ireland in the most recent year for which figures are available. [87733]
John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician who has been asked to reply.
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about how many and what percentage of families with three or more children in which neither parent works for each county in (a) Wales, (b) Scotland, (c) England and (d) Northern Ireland in the most recent year.
The table overleaf gives the estimates of the number and the percentage of families with three or more children for the three months ending June 2005. It shows people resident in the counties and unitary authorities in the UK.
Estimates are taken from the Office for National Statistics’ Labour Force Survey (LFS). As with any sample survey, estimates from the LFS are subject to a margin of uncertainty.
| Families with three or more dependent children in which neither parent works by area of usual residence Not seasonally adjusted | ||
| Families with three or more children | ||
| Three months ending June 2005 | In which neither parent works (000) | As percentage of all such families |
| (1)
Includes estimates for counties not listed for which sample sizes are
too small to provide reliable
estimates. (2 )Small sizes for all individual counties in Wales and Scotland are too small to provide estimates. Source: ONS Labour Force Survey | ||
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which countries have committed to joining the international finance facility; and if he will make a statement. [88093]
Ed Balls: The international finance facility for immunisation was launched on 9 September 2005 by the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI), with announcements of financial contributions from the UK, France, Italy, Spain and Sweden. Norway, Brazil and South Africa have also agreed to contribute financially, their contributions were announced in December 2005, March 2006 and April 2006 respectively.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the first bond issue will be made under the international finance facility for immunisation; and if he will make a statement. [88094]
Ed Balls: The international finance facility for immunisation (IFFIm) was launched in September 2005 with contributions from France, Italy, Spain and Sweden, as well as the UK. Norway, Brazil and South Africa have since pledged contributions. The first IFFIm bonds will be issued in the next few months, and we expect that the IFFIm will begin purchasing vaccines and delivering these to the poorest countries through the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI) before the end of the year.
Mr. Kemp: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of inward investment in (a) Houghton and Washington East constituency and (b) Sunderland city council area in each year since 1997. [87363]
Mr. Timms: The Office for National Statistics has reported levels of private sector investment in NUTS 1 regions and NUTS 2 sub-regions between 1998 and 2000 in table 17 of Economic Trends, December 2003 and can be viewed at:
http://www.statistics.gov.uk/articles/economic_trends/ETDecCope.pdf
More recent information on private sector investment at the regional level only can be accessed at:
http://www.dtistats.net/sd/rci/
Public sector investment can be viewed in Public Expenditure Statistical Analyses.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the life expectancy is in each London borough, broken down by (a) sex and (b) ethnicity. [87508]
John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician who has been asked to reply.
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking what the life expectancy is in each London borough broken down by (a) sex and (b) age. (87508)
Figures on life expectancy at birth for local authorities, including London boroughs, are published annually by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) for males and females, based on three-year rolling averages. Results from 1991-93 to 2002-04 are available on the National Statistics website at: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/statbase/Product.asp?vlnk=8841
ONS does not publish life expectancy results for other ages. Figures for life expectancy at age 65 for local authorities have however previously been calculated for the most recent time period available, 2002-04. Figures for London boroughs are provided in the following table.
| Life expectancy at age 65 by London borough( 1) , 2002-04( 2) | ||
| Life expectancy at age 65 (years) | ||
| London borough | Males | Females |
| (1
)City of London has been excluded because of small numbers of
deaths and populations in this area. (2 )Results are based on deaths registered in 2002-04 and mid-year population estimates for these years. | ||
Mr. David Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether he has met (a) Sir Christopher Evans and (b) representatives of Merlin Biosciences Limited on official business in the past 12 months; and if he will make a statement. [61480]
John Healey: As part of the normal process of contact with business, Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings with a wide range of individuals and organisations. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government’s usual practice to provide details of all such meetings. Treasury meetings are conducted in accordance with the Ministerial Code and the Civil Service Code, as appropriate.
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what trade related (a) missions he plans to undertake and (b) meetings he plans to hold during the parliamentary recess. [86763]
John Healey: Treasury Ministers and officials have meetings and discussions with a wide range of organisations and individuals throughout the year as part of the process of policy development, analysisand delivery. As was the case with previous Administrations, it is not the Government’s practice to provide details of every such meeting.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many times his ministerial office has been decorated in each of the last five years. [87638]
John Healey: The Chancellor’s office was decorated once during this period as part of the refurbishment of 1 Horse Guards road.
Mr. Soames: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which countries he has visited in Africa since 1997; and what the (a) dates, (b) objectives and (c) outcomes were of each visit. [87411]
John Healey: Since 1999, the Government have published on an annual basis a list of all overseas visits by Cabinet Ministers costing in excess of £500. Copies of the lists are available in the Library of the House. Information for 2005-06 is currently being compiled and will be published shortly. All ministerial travel by Treasury Ministers is undertaken in accordance with the “Ministerial Code and Travel” by Ministers.
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when and for how long he has visited (a) each member state of the European Union, (b) Japan, (c) India, (d) Brazil, (e) Canada, (f) New Zealand, (g) Australia, (h) South Korea, (i) Russia, (j) Singapore, (k) Thailand and (l) Mexico since 1997. [87738]
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 10 July 2006, Official Report, column 1643W, on his official visit (Nigeria), what the normal procedures are; and on what date they were completed. [87893]
John Healey: Appropriate parties were notified prior to the visit. In addition the visit itself was widely publicised before it happened.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer further to Releasing the resources to meet the challenge ahead, Cm 6889, what reduction in the administration budget he will require of the Ministry of Defence. [86916]
Mr. Timms: While the Government are committedto controlling the overheads of all Government Departments, “Releasing the resources to meet the challenge ahead” cm 6889 does not set targetsfor individual Government Departments. The Government have affirmed their commitment to bear down on administration costs over the CSR period.
David Simpson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many MRSA-related deaths there have been in (a) the UK and (b) each region in each of the last five years. [88152]
John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunell, dated 24 July 2006:
As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking how many MRSA-related deaths there have been in (a) the UK and (b) each region in each of the last five years.
Figures on deaths involving MRS A are not available for the whole of the UK on a consistent basis. Figures for England and Wales are published annually in Health Statistics Quarterly - the most recent figures are for 2004 and were published in Health Statistics Quarterly 29 in February 2006. Figures for Northern Ireland are published annually - figures for the last five years were given in Hansard Written Answer 83964, Column 1774W.
Figures on deaths mentioning MRSA for Government Office Regions of England, and Wales, are given in the attached table for the years 2000 to 2004.
| Number of deaths where MRSA was a contributory factor( 1) , Government office regions of England, and Wales( 2) , 2000-2004( 3) | |||||
| Government office region | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 |
| (1)
Identified using the methodology described in Griffiths C, Lamagni TL,
Crowcroft NS, Duckworth G and Rooney C (2004) Trends in MRSA in England
and Wales: analysis of morbidity and mortality data for 1993-2002.
Health Statistics Quarterly 21, 15-22. (2) Usual
residence of the deceased. (3) Figures are for deaths
occurring in the years 2000 to 2004. (4 )Includes
non-residents. | |||||
James Brokenshire: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he will answer named day questions 61459, 61460 and 61461, concerning contracts and tenders with Capita plc., due for answer on 23 March. [83213]
John Healey [holding answer 10 July 2006]: I have done so. I apologise on behalf of the Treasury that the answer to the hon. Member’s questions was delayed.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what net taxes and national insurance contributions were, excluding North Sea revenues as defined in footnote three to table C9 of the 2006 Budget report, HC 968, in each year since 1976-77; and what these figures represent as a percentage of gross domestic product in each year. [87533]
Mr. Timms: Data on net taxes and national insurance contributions and North Sea revenues as a percentage of GDP back to 1973-74 can be found in table C1 of the Public Finances Databank (availableon the web at: http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/economic_data_and_tools/finance_spending_statistics/pubsec_finance/psf_statistics.cfm).
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people have been employed in the Office of Government Commerce efficiency team in each of the last five years. [87456]
John Healey: The OGC Efficiency Team was set up in 2004-05 to implement the findings of Sir Peter Gershon’s Report “Releasing Resources to the Front Line”.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he has met the Prime Minister to discuss reports received from the Office of Government Commerce efficiency team in the last 12 months. [87457]
John Healey: The Chancellor is in regular and frequent contact with the Prime Minister on a wide range of issues. As has been the practice of successive Administrations, it is not the practice of the Government to provide detailed information relating to discussions between Ministers.
Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the level of (a) legal and (b) illegal imports of products manufactured from oxycodone hydrochloride from the Republic of Ireland. [80575]
Mr. Coaker: I have been asked to reply.
Legal imports from the republic of Ireland are shown in total figures in the following table:
| Oxycodone hydrochloride (kilogram) | |
No assessment of illegal importation has been made.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what projections in respect of unfunded public sector pension schemes in the 2005 Long Term Public Finance Report would be if allowance were made for (a) the future impact on NHS payscales of the implementation of Agenda For Change and (b) the agreement of new contracts for general practitioners and hospital consultants. [87530]
Mr. Timms: Existing GAD analysis in the technical note “Unfunded Public Service Pension Schemes: 2005 Cash flow Projections: Assumptions and Data” placed in the House of Commons library on 12 June 2006 takes into account the ‘one off’ effect of Agenda for Change. The future impact on NHS payscales or the agreement of new contracts for GPs and Hospital Consultants were not considered. These will be factored in GAD analysis as evidence of their effect comes through in future. Providing detailed updated projections would incur disproportionate costs, although “Total Liability of unfunded Public Service occupational Pension Schemes” placed in the House of Commons Library on 2 March 2006 estimated that the impact during 2004-05 of Agenda for Change and new GP contracts increased the liability of the unfunded schemes by £46 billion.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the (a) average amount of personal debt per person and (b) total amount of personal debt was in (i) Brent and (ii) London in the last period for which figures are available. [87781]
John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the national statistician, who has been asked to reply.
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question on personal debt in the UK. (87781)
We are unable to provide levels of total personal debt by region. The following table shows estimates for the whole ofthe UK.
| End-year | ||
| Total personal debt (£ million) | Average personal total debt (£) | |
| Note: For
average per head figures, the denominator is population aged
16+. | ||
The estimates of debt and income are national accounts series for the combined household and non-profit institutions serving households (NPISH) sectors. Estimates for households alone are not available. NPISHs are legal entities which are principally engaged in the production of non-market services for households and whose main resources are voluntary contributions by households. Examples of NPISHs are: charities; relief and aid organisations; educational establishments; Trade Unions; Professional Associations, Political Parties and Religious Organisations, and Sports Clubs and Associations.
Further data are available from table A64 in United Kingdom Economic Accounts which is available at the following address: http://www.statistics.gov.uk/StatBase/Product.asp?vlnk=1904&Pos=&ColRank=l&Rank=422
John Thurso: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what tax subsidies are available for the use of methyl tertiary butyl ether and other oxygenates instead of high aromatic blend stocks as an additive to petrol. [86860]
John Healey: Methyl tertiary butyl ether is liable to duty at the same rate as ultra-low sulphur petrol (currently 47.1 pence per litre).
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what representations his Department has made on planning policy to the Department of Communities and Local Government or the then Office of the Deputy Prime Minister in the last 12 months; [86838]
(2) how many civil servants in his Department work on planning policy; [86839]
John Healey: The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) leads on planning policy. Treasury officials work closely, on an ongoing basis, with the DCLG on land-use planning policy and planning policy guidance issues.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many PSA targets set in SR2002 (a) have and (b) have not been achieved. [87458]
Mr. Timms: Departments report on progress against their PSA targets twice yearly in their Departmental and Autumn Performance Reports. It is not possible to provide a full tally due to lags in departmental data and the fact that some targets are still ongoing, with an end date in the future. However, when departments provided summary assessments for a majority of SR2002 targets in their latest Autumn Performance Reports over 80 per cent. of those targets were reported to be met or on course.
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which public affairs and public relations companies (a) his Department and (b) agencies of his Department have used since 1997. [83784]
John Healey: The Treasury and its agencies have reviewed their supplier and expenditure records for the past four financial years and found no suppliers which they know to be public affairs or public relations companies.
Mr. Djanogly: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the reasons for the delays and backlog resulting from the purchase and installation of the Registration on-line computer system at register offices in England and Wales. [87860]
John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician, who has been asked to reply.
The Registrar General has been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking what assessment he has made of the reasons for the delays and backlog resulting from the purchase and installation of the Registration On-line computer system at register offices in England and Wales. I am replying in her absence. (87860)
Civil partnership legislation took effect in England and Wales on 5 December 2005 and was available to those wishing to make use of it from that date, without delays. To avoid any risk of delay or inconvenience, Civil Partnerships were initially recorded on a manual system with the Registration On-line (RON) computer system coming into use on 6 March 2006. An exercise to capture details of the manual notices and registrations for ceremonies prior to 6 March, and put them on the RON database, is nearing completion.
Use of RON for registration of births, still births, and deaths is expected to commence later this year, with marriages following in 2007. This will take account of the experience of using RON to date, and will progressively replace existing systems in Register Offices across England and Wales.
Mr. Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how much Sir David Varney is being paid to act as a senior adviser on Transformational Government; and who is meeting the cost; [88214]
John Healey: The Chancellor of the Exchequer announced in the 2006 Budget the appointment ofSir David Varney to advise him on opportunities for transforming the delivery of public services. Details of Sir David's work are set out in “Releasing the Resources to Meet the Challenges Ahead: Value for Money in the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review” (Cm 6889). He will report to the Chancellor on his findings in time to inform the 2007 Comprehensive Spending Review.
Mr. Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) how much was spent on the creation of British small business investment companies in each year since 2003; and if he will make a statement; [84806]
Margaret Hodge: I have been asked to reply.
Mr. Francois: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 20 June 2006, Official Report, column 1857W, on Small Change Big Difference, what therapies are available to employees of his Department; how many people have made use of them; whether the therapies provided are subsidised by his Department; and what the total cost is to his Department of providing these therapies. [83493]
John Healey: All services are purchased privately by staff. No services are subsidised and there is no cost to the Department in providing them.
Mrs. Dorries: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many (a) individual and (b) late payments of working tax credits were made in each week in March and April 2006, up to the last period for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [64468]
Dawn Primarolo: Individual payments made for each week in March and April are shown in the following table:
| Number | |
There is no record of payments being made late during those weeks.
Mr. Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the tax credits e-portal was re-opened. [76419]
Dawn Primarolo: The tax credit e-portal has not yet been re-opened. DWP access to the e-portal was reinstated on 24 April 2006 and the “Do I qualify” element was restored on 31 May 2006.
Mr. Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many fraudulent tax credit claims have been made over the telephone since April 2004; and if he will make a statement. [76488]
Dawn Primarolo: A claim for tax credits cannot be made over the telephone.
Lynne Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the average payment in family credit, working families tax credit and their successors was in each applicable year at current prices; and what the (a) total expenditure and (b) expenditure net of tax receipts was in each year. [80066]
Dawn Primarolo: The following table shows the total expenditure and average finalised award for family credit, working families tax credit and their successors since 1991-92.
| Expenditure in nominal terms (£ billion) | Average award at current prices (£ per family per week) | |
| (1)
Excluding disability working allowance. This was phased out between
October 1999 and March 2000. (2 )Excluding disabled
person’s tax credit. This was phased in between October 1999 and
March 2000 and ceased in early April 2003. (3
)Working families tax credits ended 7 April 2003, therefore only
small amount of expenditure
recorded. | ||
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-quarterly-stats.htm
Net expenditure of working families tax credits between 1999 and 2003 are as follows:
| £ billion | |
Mr. Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) what estimate has been made of the number of multiple separate cases of tax credit claims from the same address; how much fraud has been uncovered; and if he will make a statement; [78406]
Dawn Primarolo: HMRC have measures in place to tackle such indication of possible fraud. However, it would be inappropriate to disclose detailed information relating to HMRC action to reduce tax credits fraud as to do so could provide assistance to those engaged in criminal activity.
Anne Main: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his assessment is of the ability of the tax credits computer system to recalculate tax credits payments to surviving spouses and families; and if he will make a statement. [81526]
Dawn Primarolo: The tax credit computer does not recalculate tax credits payments in these circumstances. A new claim is made by the surviving partner.
Anne Main: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many staff have been employed (a) full-time and (b) part-time in administering the tax credit system in each year since its inception; and how many hours overtime were paid in each of those years. [81527]
Dawn Primarolo: For the approximate number of staff deployed to tax credits work in 2003-04, 2004-05 and 2005-06, I refer the hon. Member to the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General published on11 July 2006 which is available at http://www.nao.org.uk/home.htm Given that HMRC constantly monitor and balance the needs of their various work areas and deploy their resources accordingly, figures about the number of staff in HMRC who are working on tax credits at any one time can vary.
Mr. Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer whether there have been (a) successful and (b) unsuccessful organised frauds of the tax credit system since 1 December 2005; and if he will make a statement. [81754]
Dawn Primarolo: I refer the hon. Member to the HMRC publication “Tackling error and fraud in the Child and Working Tax Credits” available on the HMRC website at www.hmrc.gov.uk/news/index.htm and to HM Revenue and Customs 2005-06 Accounts: the Comptroller and Auditor General’s Standard Report, Part 2, available at http://www.nao.org.uk/pn/05-06/05061159.htm
Mr. Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people received tax credits while unemployed in each year since 2001-02; and if he will make a statement. [83904]
Dawn
Primarolo: Working families tax credit awards, which were
payable in 2001-02 and 2002-03, were not available to families who were
out of work at the start of the award. Children’s tax credit
benefited only taxpayers and therefore were also only available for
in-work families. No information is available on the number of families
who received working families tax
credit or children’s tax credits that included an adult who was
out of work for all or part of the year.
http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/personal-tax-credits/cwtc-quarterly-stats.htm
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what discussions took place between his Department and the BBC about the decision not to renew the contract for renewal and purchase of television licences supplied at post offices. [87430]
John Healey: The Treasury has had no discussions with the BBC in relation to the BBC's procurement exercise for its “over-the-counter” TV licensing business.
Jim Cousins: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of workers in each (a) industry sector and (b) occupational group were temporary in (i) 1997, (ii) 2001 and (iii) 2005; and what each sector’s and group’s share was of the total number of temporary workers in each year. [86546]
John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician who has been asked to reply.
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about the percentage of temporary workers in employment in (a) industry sectors and (b) occupational groups for the years 1997, 2001 and 2005; and what each sector’s and group’s share was of the total number of temporary workers in each of those years. (86546)
The two tables attached show the available information covering the 12 month periods ending February 1999 and 2001, and December 2005. No comparable information is available for 1997.
These estimates, as with any from sample surveys, are subject to a margin of uncertainty.
| Table 1: Temporary employees as a percentage of all employees by occupation and industry, 1999, 2001 and 2005—United Kingdom | ||
| Twelve months ending: | February 1999 | |
| Number (Thousand) | As percentage of total employees in industry | |
| Twelve months ending: | February 2001 | |
| All employees( 1) | Number (Thousand) | As percentage of total employees in industry |
| Twelve months ending: | December 2005 | |
| Number (Thousand) | As percentage of total employees in occupation/industry | |
| (1)
Total includes those who did not state their occupation, whereas
occupation group percentages exclude them. (2 )Data
not available. (3 )Total includes those whose workplace is outside the UK, or who did not state their industry, whereas industry group percentages exclude them. Source: ONS: Labour Force Survey Annual datasets | ||
| Table 2: Temporary employees by occupation and industry 1999, 2001 and 2005—United Kingdom | ||
| February 1999 | ||
| Twelve months ending: | Number (Thousand) | As percentage of all temporary employees |
| February 2002 | ||
| Twelve months ending: | Number (Thousand) | As percentage of all temporary employees |
| December 2005 | ||
| Twelve months ending: | Number (Thousand) | As percentage of all temporary employees |
| (1)
Total includes those who did not state their occupation, whereas
occupation group percentages exclude them. (2 )Data
not available. (3 )Total includes those whose workplace is outside the UK, or who did not state their industry, whereas industry group percentages exclude them. Source: ONS: Labour | ||
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps his Department has taken to prevent the financing of terrorism since February 2006; and if he will make a statement. [88095]
Ed Balls: HM Treasury has continued to work closely with other policy departments, law enforcement agencies and international partners in order to better deter, detect and disrupt terrorism and the financing of terrorism.
Sarah Teather: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people were (a) unemployed and (b) long-term unemployed in (i) Brent, East and (ii) Brent in each year since 1997. [87422]
John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician who has been asked to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 24 July 2006:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your Parliamentary Question about unemployment.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) compiles statistics of unemployment for local areas from the annual local area Labour Force Survey and the Annual Population Survey (APS) following International Labour Organisation definitions. The number of unemployed, resident in the Brent East Parliamentary Constituency was provided in Table 1 of an Answer on 11th July 2006 (Hansard column 1726W, reference 79828) up to the 12 months ending December 2004. The number of long-term unemployed was given in Table 3 of the same Answer. Table 1 attached shows more recent information from the APS. Table 2, attached, shows corresponding data for people resident in the London borough of Brent.
These estimates, as with any from sample surveys, are subject to a margin of uncertainty.
ONS also compiles statistics for local areas of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA). Data for all claimants resident in the Brent East constituency was provided in Table 6 of the above Answer and the number of long-term claimants (over 12 months) was given in Table 8 of the previous Answer. Table 3, attached, shows corresponding data for the London borough of Brent.
| Table 1: Number of unemployed persons, aged 16 and over, resident in Brent East Parliamentary constituency | ||
| Thousand | ||
| 12 months ending | Number of unemployed | Long-term unemployed( 1) |
| (1)
Over 12 months. (2) Sample size too small to provide
estimate. Notes: 1. Estimates are subject to
sampling variability. 2. Changes in the estimates from year to
year should be treated with particular
caution. Source: Annual Population
Survey | ||
| Table 2: Number of unemployed persons, aged 16 and over, resident in the London borough of Brent | ||
| Thousand | ||
| 12 months ending | Number of unemployed | Long-term unemployed( 1) |
| (1)
Over 12 months. Notes: 1. Estimates are
subject to sampling variability. 2. Changes in the estimates
from year to year should be treated with particular
caution. Source: Annual local area Labour
Force Survey; Annual Population
Survey | ||
| Table 3: Claimants of Jobseeker’s Allowance resident in the London borough of Brent | ||
| All claimants | Long-term claimants( 1,2) | |
| (1)
Computerised claims only. Dataset rounded to nearest
5 (2) Over 12
months. Source: Jobcentre Plus administrative
data held on
NomisÂ(r) | ||
John Hemming: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what estimate he has made of the contribution to the UK economy of those on benefits who volunteer. [86735]
Dawn Primarolo: No such research has been undertaken. However, the Government recognises the potential impact of volunteering on helping benefit claimants return to work, and has taken a numberof steps to facilitate volunteering. The Russell Commission looked at the experiences of young volunteers in receipt of benefits, and put forward a number of recommendations, as well as publishing the Guide to Volunteering on Benefits.
Mrs. Villiers: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer if he will place in the Library a copy of the report on the dry run of the Whole of Government Accounts process for 2005-06. [88090]
Mr. Timms: In December 2005, HM Treasury published a report entitled ‘Delivering the benefits of accruals accounting for the whole public sector’. Within this document a full account was given of the Whole of Government process to date and the intended 2005-06 dry run. There is no current intention to publish any further account of the 2005-06 Whole of Government dry run process.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of abortions were performed on pregnancies of (a) under nine weeks, (b) nine to 12 weeks, (c) 13 to 16 weeks, (d) 17 to 19 weeks, (e) 20 to 23 weeks and (f) 24 weeks and over duration in 2005. [85147]
Caroline Flint: The information requested is shown in the following table:
| Abortions, residents: percentages by gestation, England and Wales, 2005 | |
| Gestation | Percentage |
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many abortions have been performed under the terms of the Abortion Act 1967 as amended by section 34 of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act 1990; and how many and what proportion were performed (a) in an emergency to save the life of the mother and (b) in cases of rape. [85170]
Caroline Flint: There were 5.3 million (5,289,701) abortions performed in England and Wales on residents between 1968 and 2005. In the period between 1968 and 2002, 410 were performed under Section 1(4), in an emergency to save the life of the mother. The proportion performed in cases of rape is not collected.
Notes:
We are unable to provide these data for confidentiality reasons as the totals for the three years 2003-05 are less than 10 and have not previously been published. It is intended that the Department will publish this information in a 10-year table (2003 to 2012) if numbers reach a total of 10 or more.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the total number of abortions was in 2005 at (a) 26 weeks and (b) each week after the 26th, broken down by grounds for termination. [85171]
Caroline Flint: We are unable to provide these data for confidentiality reasons as set out in Statistical Bulletin 2006-01, “Abortion Statistics, England and Wales: 2005”; copies of which are available from the Library and also on the Department's website at:
www.dh.gov.uk/assetRoot/04/13/68/59/04136859.pdf.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many clerical and administrative staff have been allocated lower pay bands as a result of Agenda for Change. [84877]
Ms Rosie Winterton: From the available information on the computer aided job evaluation system it would suggest that the majority administrative and clerical posts are matching national profiles across bands one to five. This cannot readily be compared to the previous Whitley system.
Mr.
Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for
Health how many people (a) under and (b) over the age of
18 years were admitted to hospital for
alcohol-related
problem in each year since 1997 for which figures are available, broken
down by (i) region, (ii) health authority and (iii) primary care trust.
[84911]
Caroline
Flint: The information requested is not held centrally in
the format requested. However, data is
provided in the following table for patients admitted to hospital for
alcohol-related problems broken down by strategic health authority
(SHA) for 2003-04 and
2004-05.
| Count of patients admitted to hospital for alcohol-related conditions by region, SHA and age (ICD10 codes F10,K70,T51) Data for all NHS hospitals in England, data years 2003-04, 2004-05 | |||||
| 2004-05 | 2003-04 | ||||
| Government office region | SHA | under 18 | 18 and over | under 18 | 18 and over |
| Notes: Ungrossed Data Figures have not been adjusted for shortfalls in data that is the data is ungrossed. Patient counts Patient counts are based on the unique patient identifier HES1D. This identifier is derived based on patient's date of birth, postcode, sex, local patient identifier and NHS number, using an agreed algorithm. Where data are incomplete, HESID must erroneously link episodes or fail to recognise episodes for the same patient. Care is therefore needed, especially where duplicate records persist in the data. The patient count cannot be summed across a table where patients may have episodes in more than one cell. ICD10 codes used: F10, T51, K70 - Alcohol related admissions. Data has been provided for 2004-05 and 2003-04 only as data from earlier years is not comparable as a time series in the requested format due to boundary changes of SHA's. Source: Hospital Episode Statistics (HES), The Information Centre for health and social care. | |||||
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what account was taken by the National Institute of Health and Clinical Excellence of the opinion of health professionals on the efficacy of Alzheimer drugs when drawing up its recommendations. [85212]
Andy
Burnham: The National Institute for Health and Clinical
Excellence (NICE) follows a standard process when developing its
guidance. This process encourages bodies representing health
professionals to register as consultees. Consultees can submit written
evidence, comment on the appraisal documents and appeal against the
appraisal committee's final recommendations. All NICE guidance is
subject to public consultation on the NICE website and any clinician
can log on and give their comments in this way. Two clinical experts
nominated by the consultee organisations give their expert personal
view by attending the initial appraisal committee discussion
and/or providing written evidence to the committee. Evidence submitted
by health professional groups and clinical experts is published on the
NICE website throughout the guidance development
process.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many babies have been born in each London borough through assisted reproductive technology in each year since 2000. [87116]
Caroline Flint: The information requested is not collected centrally. The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) does collect data on live births reported to it by HFEA licensed clinics resulting from treatment cycles involving in vitro fertilisation and donor insemination. Data for London are shown in the table.
| Live births resulting from in vitro fertilisation (IVF) and donor insemination (DI) treatment cycles from in London from 2000-04 | |
| District—London( 1) | |
| (1)
The table identifies the total number of babies born according to their
date of birth. HFEA has used the Patients Guide To Infertility
definition of regions, which relates to the location in which the IVF
or DI treatment took place. This is not necessarily the location of the
birth or the place of residence of the patient. (2) 2004 is the most recent year for which information is available. Source: Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority | |
Mr. Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many patients within the Coastal primary care trust and East Kent hospital trust areas are awaiting (a) assessment and (b) fitting of hearing aids for the first time. [87266]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The information requested is not collected centrally.
Mr. Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the East Kent hospital trust will switch to the exclusive fitting of digital hearing aids. [87267]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The information requested is not held centrally. It is for primary care trusts to ensure their local population benefits from modernised hearing aid services.
Mr. Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many audiology posts are unfilled in England. [87268]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The March 2005 vacancy survey recorded 70 vacancies for audiologists which remained unfilled after three months or more in England. This was a three-month vacancy rate of4.8 per cent.
The results of the 2006 vacancy survey are due to be published on the 27 July 2006.
Ann Keen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps her Department is taking to inform the South Asian community about (a) high blood pressure and (b) diabetes. [84432]
Caroline Flint: The White Papers, “Choosing Health” and “Our Health, Our Care, Our Say”, set out a range of action to improve health and tackle health inequalities that can lead to ill health. General Government action promoting a balanced diet and increased physical activity helps to address the risk factors that may lead to high blood pressure and diabetes. In particular, tackling obesity and action to reduce the intake of salt, fat and sugar can help reduce these risks.
Mr. Hunt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) whether her Department has issued guidelines to primary care trusts on the funding of brachytherapy; [86456]
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment she has made of the use of brachytherapy; and if she will make a statement. [87681]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The Department issued ‘Advice on the Development of Permanent Seed Implant Brachytherapy Services (low dose brachytherapy) for Localised Prostate Cancer in England’ for consultation in summer 2005. The consultation document can be found on the Department’s website at:
www.dh.gov.uk/Consultations/ClosedConsultations.
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what account was taken of her Department’s policy on breastfeeding when assessing whether to allow the Patch infant formula trial in NHS hospitals. [85736]
Caroline Flint: The Department’s policy on the governance of research is set out in the research governance framework for health and social care (second edition, April 2005), a statement of standards issued by the Secretary of State for Health. Any research study involving national health service patients, their organs, tissues or data or the use of NHS premises or facilities has to have the favourable opinion of a NHS research ethics committee.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what mechanisms there are by which NHS organisations can give money to other NHS organisations; and what estimate she has made of capital shifting within the NHS in each month of 2006. [85624]
Andy Burnham: The Department uses the process of inter authority transfers (IATs) to effect revenue and capital resource and cash transfers between national health service organisations during a financial year. These adjustments can be requested on a monthly basis as part of the NHS financial monitoring arrangements and must be agreed by both parties to the transfer and the Department.
Mr.
Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for
Health when she expects the recommendations made by the
review of the Carr Hill formula to be published; and if she will make a
statement on the conclusions of the first phase of the review.
[84011]
Caroline Flint: It is anticipated that the group tasked with the review of general medical services funding will report on its findings and recommendations during 2006-07.
No conclusions have yet been reached by the group.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what responsibility general practitioners have to inform parents and guardians that children are due for vaccination. [85635]
Caroline Flint: Under the terms of their contract, general practitioners are required to provide essential services to their patients—which includes the provision of health promotion advice, for example on vaccinations and immunisations. Practices may also choose to provide childhood immunisations themselves under a directed enhanced service. This requires practices to offer recommended immunisations to children on its childhood immunisation scheme register and information to parents or guardians about its immunisation programme.
James Duddridge: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she made of clinical care following the death of Peter Halley of Southend-on-Sea at Southend hospital on 14 May 2004; and what existing policies were amended as a result. [87946]
Andy Burnham: It is for primary care trusts in partnership with strategic health authorities and other local stakeholders to determine how best to use their funds to meet national and local priorities for improving health, tackling health inequalities and modernising services. The local national health service owes a duty of care to any patient it treats.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidance she has issued to NHS foundation trusts on provision of practical and clinically safe medical care in a community setting. [85094]
Ms
Rosie Winterton: National health service foundation trusts
(NHSFTs) are bound to comply with national health care standards and
targets under their terms of authorisation (terms and conditions of
operation) and are accountable to Monitor (the statutory name of which
is the independent regulator
of NHS foundation trusts) for complying with the authorisation. Monitor
has powers of intervention in cases of significant
failure.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when she expects to publish the full guidance following her letter sent in February to strategic health authorities identifying the criteria for enhancing the role of community hospitals for revenue purposes following the recent capital announcement. [84160]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The further guidance identified in the letter sent to strategic health authorities on 16 February entitled ‘Moving care closer to home’ was published on 5 July 2006. The publication is titled ‘Our Health, Our Care, Our Community: investing in the future of community hospitals and services’ and is available in the Library and on the Department’s website at:
www.dh.gov.uk/assetRoot/04/13/69/32/04136932.pdf
Mr. Dunne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many recent (a) letters and (b) representations her Department has received in relation to (i) Ludlow Community Hospital and (ii) Bishop’s Castle Community Hospital in Shropshire. [85286]
Caroline Flint: The Department has received a large number of letters from both hon. Members and members of the public about the review of services in Shropshire, including letters about Ludlow Community Hospital and Bishop’s Castle Community Hospital. An accurate figure could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
Mr. Dunne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what estimate her Department has made of the number of community hospital beds in the Shropshire Primary Care Trust area in each year since 1997; [85287]
Andy
Burnham: Primary care trusts (PCTs) are responsible for
commissioning services, including community beds and community hospital
facilities, to meet the health needs of their local population.
Shropshire County PCT and Telford and Wrekin PCT
are currently consulting on proposed changes to community hospitals
across
Shropshire.
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate her Department has made of the number of community hospital beds in the Cotswolds and Vale Primary Care Trust area in each year since 1997. [85428]
Andy Burnham: The information requested is not held centrally.
Mr. Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to her oral statement of 5 July 2006, Official Report, column 826, on community hospitals, how many community hospitals have (a) opened and (b) closed in Avon, Wiltshire and Gloucestershire Strategic Health Authority area since 1997; and for how many possible closure is being considered. [85434]
Andy Burnham: The information requested is not collected centrally.
Mr. Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate her Department has made of the number of community hospital beds in Kennet and North Wiltshire primary care trust area in each year since 1997. [85496]
Andy Burnham: It is for local primary care trusts in conjunction with their strategic health authorities to make an assessment of the local health service provision.
Mr. Winnick: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when she will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Walsall, North, of 13 June 2006, regarding a constituent. [87165]
Andy Burnham: A reply was sent to the hon. Member on 21 July 2006.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people in England have been diagnosed with Crohn’s disease; what NHS funds are set aside to help treat those suffering from the disease; and what public funds have been allocated to help finance research into developing a DNA Crohn’s disease vaccine. [87071]
Mr. Ivan Lewis [holding answer 20 July 2006]: Information on the number of people diagnosed with Crohn's disease is not collected. NHS funds are not specifically set aside for the treatment of individual diseases.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what research she has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the quality of dental appliances entering the UK from (i) EU countries and (ii) countries outside the EU; and if she will make a statement. [85927]
Andy Burnham: No research has been commissioned on the quality of dental appliances entering the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) or non-EU countries. All dental appliances being placed on the UK market must meet the safety and quality requirements in the Medical Devices Directive 93/42/EC.
Mr. Hurd: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many dental practices in Ruislip-Northwood constituency have (a) opened and (b) closed since 1997. [86479]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Data on the opening and closure of general dental services (GDS) or personal dental services (PDS) practices is not collected centrally. However, the number of practice addresses is available.
The number of GDS and PDS dental practices in Ruislip-Northwood constituency is shown in the table.
| General dental services (GDS) and personal dental services (PDS): Number of GDS or PDS dental practice addresses in Ruislip-Northwood constituency as at 31 March each year | |
| Number | |
| Notes: 1. A dentist with a GDS or PDS contract may provide as little or as much national health service treatment as he or she chooses or has agreed with the primary care trust. Information concerning the amount of time dedicated to NHS work by individual GDS or PDS dentists is not centrally available. 2. Areas have been defined using the Office for National Statistics all fields postcode directory. 3. Data have been supplied by the Information Centre for health and social care. Source: The Information Centre for health and social care NHS Business Services Authority | |
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has to expand the choice available to patients over the provider of diagnostic tests which need to be completed as part of the patient’s care pathway. [86213]
Andy
Burnham: From 30 April 2006, patients awaiting diagnostic
imaging tests who do not have an appointment scheduled within 20 weeks
are being offered the choice of having their scan at
another
provider within a maximum of 20 weeks. From April 2007, patients who do
not have an appointment scheduled within 13 weeks will be offered the
choice of having their scan at another provider within a maximum of 13
weeks. Speeding up access to diagnostic imaging tests is a key element
of the drive to reduce overall access time for the benefit of patients
and central to delivering an 18-week referral to treatment patient
pathway by 2008.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent estimate she has made of the total number of each type of diagnostic test carried out in a year. [86214]
Andy Burnham: Data on the total number of each type of diagnostic test carried out in a year is not centrally collected. However, it is estimated that around 630 million diagnostic tests are carried out each year for national health service patients.
| Type | Number | |
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether (a) commissioners and (b) providers have responsibility for the reduction of diagnostic waiting times in order to achieve the 18-week waiting time target. [86215]
Andy
Burnham: Delivery of the 18-week patient pathway will be
led by primary care trusts as commissioners of care for their local
patients. All organisations delivering care along the pathway have a
responsibility to ensure that the patient does not
wait
more than 18 weeks from general practitioner referral to hospital
treatment. This includes providers of diagnostic
services.
Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the multiple traffic light system for nutrients when dealing with portions of food on the basis of levels per 100 g. [83889]
Caroline Flint: The basis for the traffic light colour coding recommended by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) reflects expert advice on the most appropriate criteria for a signposting scheme which is intend to help consumers to make healthier choices. It incorporates a per 100 g element and a per portion element for food sold in large portion sizes. In addition, the FSA recommends that traffic light colour coded signposts declares information on the levels of nutrients in a manufacturer’ recommended serving.
Mr. Evennett: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many district community nurses are employed by the South East London Strategic Health Authority. [81947]
Ms Rosie Winterton: South East London Strategic Health Authority (SHA) ceased to exist on 30 June 2006 but at 30 September 2005 568 community district nurses were employed by primary care trusts in its area. National health service London was established on1 July 2006 as the SHA for London.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many doctors have been struck off in each health care trust in each of the last five years; and what the reason was in each case. [87309]
Andy Burnham: The Department does not collect this information centrally, and is not directly involved in the disciplining of individual doctors. Decisions about whether a doctor should be struck off the register are a matter for the General Medical Council.
Judy Mallaber: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will instruct primary care trusts (a) to withdraw from contracts with Air Products for the supply of domiciliary oxygen and (b) to take steps to ensure a reliable supply of domiciliary oxygen to patients. [86078]
Andy
Burnham: Since the start of a six-month transition
programme on 1 February 2006, we have been working with primary care
trusts to transfer patients to new service suppliers, including Air
Products. This includes action to monitor closely
each
supplier’s capacity to deliver the required standard of service
to all patients using oxygen therapy in the home. There is continuous
assessment of suppliers with regular meetings to discuss
suppliers’ reports on progress and action to tackle emerging
issues.
Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what the expected annual change in costs is of providing domiciliary oxygen services before and after the introduction of the new contract; [82544]
Andy Burnham: In 2004-05 the last full financial year of providing the service under former arrangements, the cost of providing domiciliary oxygen services was £32,809,524. It is not possible to make a direct comparison in the costs of these arrangements with the arrangements supporting service delivery before that date, as the costs are calculated on a differentbasis. Under the new arrangements, which began on1 February 2006, the annual cost will reflect the regional contract per diem prices in the 10 oxygen service regions in England and local patterns in ordering these services. The full cost of the service for 2005-06 is not yet available and these will include costs associated with the introduction of the new arrangements on 1 February 2006. The first full year under the new service arrangement will be 2006-07 and we are only three months into the current financial year. In addition, in many parts of the country, primary care trusts have continued to work with local pharmacists to maintain a cylinder service in parallel with the new arrangements to safeguard continuity of supply to patients during action to transfer all patients to the new suppliers.
| 2005-06 | |
| Total (£000) | |
| (1)
In some calendar months there are two payment dates as payments are
made on the 1(st) of the month, unless this falls on a weekend
or a bank holiday—in which case the payment in made earlier.
Only 12 payments can be made in one financial
year. | |
Dr. Vis: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations she has received from patients who have experienced difficulties with supplies of oxygen for home oxygen therapy. [R] [83991]
Andy Burnham: Since the introduction of the new contractual arrangements of domiciliary oxygen supply on the 1 February 2006, through to 19 July 2006, the Department has received 241 written representations concerned with this service.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much her Department spent on tackling (a) drug and (b) alcohol dependency in (i) rural and (ii) non-rural areas in the last period for which figures are available; what these figures represent per head of population in each case; and if she will make a statement. [85878]
Caroline Flint: Drugs funding is issued on a drug action team (DAT) basis, which does not allow us to identify the split in funding between rural and non-rural areas. The 2006-07 pooled drug treatment budget, allocated at DAT level is shown in the table. Mainstream investment by primary care trusts and local authorities in drug treatment is additional to this and is estimated nationally at £212(1) million in 2006-07.
(1) Based on 2 per cent. inflation increase.
| Pooled drug treatment budget channelled through primary care trust 2006-07 | |||
| Region | DAT code | DAT | £ |
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate her Department has made of the number of people in (a) rural and (b) non-rural areas with (i) drug and (ii) alcohol dependency (A) in absolute terms and (B) per head of population; and if she will make a statement. [85881]
Caroline Flint: The Department’s 2004 alcohol needs assessment research project is the first alcohol needs assessment in England conducted on a national scale, and reports there are 1.1 million people in England who meet the criteria of alcohol dependence. We are unable to supply a breakdown of rural and non-rural areas, however regional breakdown is shown intable 1.
| Table 1 | |
| Region | Total |
| Table 2: Prevalence of drug dependence of adults( 1) , by NHS regional office area and sex (rate per thousand population), 2000 | |||||||||
| Rate per thousand in past year | |||||||||
| Northern and Yorkshire | Trent | West Midlands | North West | Eastern | London | South East | South West | England | |
| ‘—’denotes
no cases 0 denotes values less than 0.5 per cent. (1) Adults aged 16-74 Note: The sample for England has been subdivided into eight NHS regional office areas, which should not be mistaken for the current Government office region structure. The sample sizes in a number of regions are quite small and there was differential non-response between regions. Source: Psychiatric Morbidity Among Adults Living in Private Households, 2000. Office for National Statistics carried out on behalf of Department of Health, the Scottish Executive and the National Assembly for Wales. | |||||||||
Mr. Fallon: To ask the Secretary of State for Health why her Department is not renewing its contract to provide the journal Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin to doctors and therapeutic advisers in England. [73867]
Andy Burnham [holding answer 5 June 2006]: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for South Cambridgeshire (Mr. Lansley), on5 June 2006, Official Report, column 366W.
John Hemming: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what estimate has been made of the number of local NHS organisations which will bulk subscribe to the Drugs and Therapeutic Bulletin following the ending of the NHS-wide subscription; [86770]
Andy Burnham: The Department has made no such estimate and has no plans to issue guidance to the national health service. I understand that Which? Limited, the publishers of the Drug and Therapeutics Bulletin are examining a range of possible future subscription arrangements.
Mr. Howard: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the financial out-turn of the East Kent Hospitals NHS Trust was in each year since 1997; and if she will make a statement. [85366]
Caroline Flint: The following table provides the financial outturn of the East Kent Hospitals NHS Trust since 1999 to 2004-05.The first available data for this trust is for 1999-2000.
| £000 | |
| Source: Audited summarisation schedules of: East Kent Hospitals NHS Trust (1999-2000 to 2004-05) Provisional outturn for East Kent Hospitals NHS Trust (2005-06) | |
Mr. Howard: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what payments central Government made to East Kent Hospitals NHS Trust for 2005-06; whether there were payments that were undertaken to be made but were not made; what payments are planned for 2006-07; and if she will make a statement. [85369]
Caroline Flint: Details of the payments made by central Government to East Kent Hospitals National Health Service Trust during 2005-06 and 2006-07 is available in the Library.
Mr. Pelling: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the waiting time for an echo-cardiogram was in Croydon in the last period for which figures are available; and how many such procedures have been carried out in the last 12 months. [84666]
Andy Burnham: This information is not available in the format requested.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of e-coli were recorded in each London borough in each of the last five years. [85952]
Caroline Flint: Although food poisoning is notifiable, there is no specific requirement to identify the organism that is involved.
(1) Before 2002, data collection was carried out using different geographical boundaries and are not therefore included.
| Number of confirmed cases of E.coli 0157 | |
| Source: Laboratory of Enteric Pathogens, Health Protection Agency Centre for Infections, Colindale | |
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what (a) targets, (b) instructions and (c) guidance have been set for primary care trusts in respect of the (i) type and (ii) proportion of elective acute procedures which should be procured from the independent sector; [87661]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: There are no instructions or targets for the type or proportion of activity that primary care trusts (PCTs) must secure through the independent sector, so there is no question of PCTs failing to secure a given level of provision.
Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many emergency admissions to hospital there were in each year since 1998-99. [82013]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The information requested is shown in the following table:
| Count of emergency admissions for all national health service hospitals in England | |
| Data year | Emergency admissions |
| Source: The Information Centre for health and social care | |
Mr. Maude: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations she has received on the establishment of a Faculty of Medical Management and Leadership. [71421]
Andy Burnham: I have received no representations on this subject.
Helen Goodman: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what steps her Department has taken to ensure that (a) supermarkets and (b) manufacturers implement the recommendations of the Food Standards Agency concerning front of pack labelling. [81419]
Caroline Flint: The Government recommendations for voluntary front of pack signpost labelling based on four core principles:
provision of information for fat, saturated fat, sugar and salt;
use of red, amber, green colour coding to indicate at a glance whether the level of individual nutrients is high, medium and low;
information on the level of each nutrient present in a portion of the product; and
use of nutritional criteria developed by the agency.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures the Government and their non-departmental public bodies have put in place to ensure food manufacturers report to the Food Standards Agency infections harmful to human health in their produce; and if she will make a statement. [84627]
Caroline Flint: Under the General Food Law Regulation (EC) 178/2002, it is illegal to place any food on the market if it is unsafe, that is, injurious to human health or unfit for human consumption. The regulation also requires food manufacturers to inform immediately both the Food Standards Agency (FSA) and their local authority of any food assessed to be potentially harmful to health. The food must then be withdrawn from the market and, if necessary, recalled from consumers. In order to facilitate food manufacturers' obligations to report food incidents under Regulation 178/2002, the FSA has made available to industry guidance on reporting which can be accessed from the FSA's website at:
www.food.gov.uk
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent guidelines the Food Standards Agency has issued regarding testing for salmonella by food manufacturers; and if she will make a statement. [84628]
Caroline Flint: The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has not issued specific guidance on salmonella testing since testing regimes should be established by food business operators, informed by their food safety management systems. The FSA has, however, issued a range of guidance documents to assist food businesses and enforcers with implementing the new hygiene legislation. These list sources of further technical guidance from industry representative bodies and expert organisations which will help businesses to establish appropriate hazard analysis critical control point-based procedures and testing regimes.
Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment the Food Standards Agency has made of whether guideline daily amounts on food assist consumers in making judgments about the healthiness of a food product. [83884]
Caroline Flint: The Food Standards Agency tested a total of seven different guideline daily amounts (GDA) signpost formats with consumers. The results indicated that many consumers could not use this information to correctly assess the nutritional quality of food. Understanding improved when the GDA information was provided in combination with traffic light colour coding.
Ian Lucas: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the Food Standards Agency has tested the effectiveness of monochrome guideline daily amounts showing nutrients as a percentage of guideline daily amounts. [83890]
Caroline Flint: A monochrome guideline daily amount (GDA) signpost format was included in the signpost formats the Food Standards Agency tested with consumers. The results indicated that in practice many consumers could not use this information to correctly assess the nutritional quality of food. Understanding improved when the GDA information was provided in combination with traffic light colour coding.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the impact of legal fee liability upon the prosecution of food and drink companies by competent authorities under the General Food Regulations 2004; and if she will make a statement. [85039]
Caroline Flint: There has been no assessment of the impact of legal fee liability upon prosecution of food and drink companies under the General Food Regulations 2004. This was not mentioned as a possible financial burden in any of the responses to the public consultation exercise before the general food regulations were introduced.
Mr.
Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of
State for Health what information is made available to the public by
the NHS on the incidence of genetic
disorders for children of closely related parents; and if she will make
a statement.
[85017]
Andy Burnham: The provision of information to the public on this kind of issue is generally a matter for local national health service services taking into account the needs and cultural background of their local population.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 21 March 2006, Official Report, column 264W, on genito-urinary medicine (GUM), what percentage of attenders at genito-urinary medicine clinics were recorded as not given an appointment within two weeks in the (a) February 2006 and (b) May 2006 audit of GUM clinic waiting times by the Health Protection Agency. [84674]
Caroline Flint: Figures for the February 2006 audit showed that 18 per cent. of attendees at genito-urinary medicine (GUM) clinics were not seen within two weeks since first contacting the clinic. However, some of these patients were offered an earlier appointment but could not attend.
www.hpa.org.uk/infections/topics_az/hiv_and_st/epidemiology/wtimes.htm
Mr. Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will promote the adoption of a Halal symbol to enable Muslim consumers easily to identify Halal products. [85576]
Caroline Flint: The Food Standards Agency works closely with the Muslim community through its Muslim organisations working group and its members are currently working on a voluntary halal code of practice to assist with producing a standardised halal certification system. Once this has been produced, it is hoped that it will be widely adopted by the Muslim community, allowing for food to be labelled or otherwise marked as halal in accordance with that code of practice and providing clearer advice for consumers.
Jeremy Corbyn: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the level of expenditure on (a) primary care and (b) hospital care was in Islington in each of the past five years; and what the estimated level is in 2006-07. [84946]
Andy Burnham: The table shows data for Islington primary care trust (PCT) for the years that it has been in existence, 2002-03 to 2004-05, which is the latest year for which information is available. Prior to 2002-03, it is not possible to identify expenditure in Islington as it was not a separate reporting identity.
| Expenditure by Islington PCT | ||
| £000 | ||
| Purchase of primary healthcare | Purchase of secondary healthcare | |
| Source: Audited
summarisation schedules of Islington
PCT. | ||
Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people were diagnosed with (a) diabetes and (b) Alzheimer’s syndrome in each London borough in each year since 1997. [87495]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Data on the number of patients diagnosed with diabetes is not held in the format requested. However, the number of patients with diabetes by London primary care trust (PCT) for March 2005 and March 2006 which are the latest figures available is shown in the following table.
Data on the number of people diagnosed with Alzheimer’s syndrome is not collected centrally.
| Number of patients with diabetes as identified on practice registers | ||||
| London | March 2006 | March 2005 | ||
Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what representations she has received from NHS employers regarding the effectiveness of the Code of Practice on the International Recruitment of Health Workers; [81789]
Ms Rosie Winterton: NHS Employers is an independent body with responsibility for providing national health service employers with guidance about employment matters, this includes advice and support on the implementation of the code of practice.
the number of agencies on the code of practice list;
ongoing investigations of alleged breaches of the code; and
removal of agencies from the list.
Mr. Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 22 June 2006, Official Report, column 2098W, on the Healthcare Commission, when she expects to publish regulations to transfer the regulation of controlled drugs to the Healthcare Commission; and what consultation is planned prior to the publication of such regulations. [87737]
Andy Burnham: The Health Bill, which creates the regulation making powers, received Royal Assent on19 July. The regulations will be laid, subject to parliamentary timetables, this autumn. The guidance on the new governance arrangements for controlled drugs was developed in conjunction with key stakeholders—professionals, regulators, police services, service providers and patient groups and was the subject of formal public consultation in the summer of 2005. The response to the consultation is available on the Department's website.
Mr. Stephen O'Brien: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) whether manufacturers of products registered under the Traditional Herbal Medicinal Products Directive will be able to indicate on their label whether they comply with organic standards of production; [85631]
Andy Burnham: Article 62 of Directive 2001/83/EC provides that, in addition to other mandatory information, the outer packaging and the package leaflet of a medicinal product covered by the requirements of the directive may include other information compatible with the summary of product characteristics which is useful for the patient, to the exclusion of any element of a promotional nature. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is currently investigating the issue raised and in particular whether there are circumstances in which references to organic production could be compatible with the summary of product characteristics.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the charge was per minute for telephone calls made (a) by patients from and (b) to patients in hospital, in each primary care trust in each of the past five years; and if she will make a statement. [87329]
Andy Burnham: The NHS Plan, published in July 2000, announced bedside televisions and telephones would be available in every major hospital by 2004. The systems have now been installed in around 80,000 beds in 160 major national health service hospitals.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent discussions she has had with the Department for Communities and Local Government on joint action to prevent health hazards resulting from poorly heated and insulated housing; and if she will make a statement. [86591]
Caroline Flint: In the recent “The UK Fuel Poverty Strategy” fourth annual progress report it highlights in most areas that there has been a lot of cross departmental work to address fuel poverty across the regions including the role of the health sector in reducing health related harm. The National Energy Action (NEA) has undertaken a wide range of projects during 2004-05 and these have aimed to contribute to the co-ordination of delivery of energy efficiency services at local level, develop strategic fuel poverty alleviation activity by regional bodies and to continue work with partners in the health sector.
Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment she has made of regional variations in availability of the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence-approved treatments for lymphoma; and if she will make a statement. [87740]
Ms Rosie Winterton: In June 2004, the National Cancer Director published a report into variations in usage of cancer drugs approved by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) including Rituximab (Mabthera) for lymphoma. This showed a 2.6 fold variation in the use of rituximab across the 34 cancer networks—this was the narrowest variation of all the NICE approved drugs considered.
Paul Rowen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much the Government have spent on research into (a) prevention and (b) treatment of lymphoma in each year from 1997. [87741]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Lymphoma is the most common type of haematological cancer and includes Hodgkin’s and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. The latter includes a wide range of conditions. Treatment depends on the type of lymphoma and staging of the disease.
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on the regulation of chiropractic, with particular reference to the proposals of the General Chiropractic Council to withdraw accreditation from the McTimoney Chiropractic course at the University of Wales. [53085]
Andy Burnham: I understand that agreement has been reached for those students currently in years three, four and five to graduate and be eligible for registration as chiropractors. The General Chiropractic Council and McTimoney College are continuing to work together to achieve a positive outcome for students currently in years one and two. However, the matter remains subjudice whilst discussions continue about the position of these students.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether she plans to make representations to the European Commission on revising the Medical Devices Directive. [86282]
Andy Burnham: The Commission published a proposed directive revising the medical devices directive in December 2005 which is currently being negotiated in the Council of Ministers working group. Given that these negotiations are ongoing there are no plans to request the Commission to undertake another revision exercise.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent advice she has received from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency with regards to the revision of the Medical Devices Directive. [85929]
Andy Burnham: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency has the responsibility for negotiating the proposal to revise the Medical Devices Directive in the Council of Ministers working group. The United Kingdom’s negotiating position has been agreed by Ministers.
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many service users from black and minority ethnic backgrounds attended each of the consultation events relating to the Race Equality Impact Assessment on the Mental Health Bill. [81978]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Care services improvement partnership and the National Assembly for Wales organised a series of seven consultation events to gather views on the proposed amendments to the Mental Health Act 1983, as part of the race equality impact assessment. The events, held in Cardiff, Leeds, Manchester, Birmingham, Bristol, Leicester and London, attracted approximately 430 people from a variety of backgrounds and organisations. Delegates were not asked to record their ethnicity, so we do not have a specific record of how many service users from black and minority ethnic backgrounds attended the events. However, of the organisations that registered their attendance there were representatives of service users groups from a range of black and minority ethnic backgrounds: Black, African, Afro-Caribbean, Somali, United Kingdom Asian, South Asian, Indian, Pakistani, Chinese and Irish.
Ann Keen: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many midwives were practising in the National Health Service in (a) London and (b) England in each year since 1992, expressed as a (i) headcount and (ii) whole-time equivalent figure. [84431]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Information on the number of midwives in London and England in each year since 1992 is shown in the table.
| National Health Service Hospital and Community Health Services: Qualified Midwifery Staff in England and the London Strategic Health Authority (SHA) Area as at 30 September each specified year | ||
| Headcount | ||
| England | Of which: London SHA total( 1) | |
| Full-time equivalent | ||
| England | Of which: London SHA total( 1) | |
| (1)
London SHA figures 1996-2001 are estimated based on the 2005
organisational structure. Full-time equivalent figures are rounded to
the nearest whole
number. (2) A new system of occupation coding for NHS non-medical staff was introduced in 1995. The new codes classify staff according to what they do rather than the terms and conditions under which they are employed i.e. national pay scales. Figures based on new occupation codes are not directly comparable with those based on the old pay scale classification, therefore figures since 1995 are not comparable with earlier years. (3) Not available. Source: The Information Centre for health and social care non-medical workforce census. | ||
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health, pursuant to the answer of 27 June 2006, Official Report, column 330W, on ministerial meetings, which two dates were cancelled for a meeting between the hon. Member for Chorley and the Minister of State for Health. [84145]
Mr. Ivan Lewis [holding answer 10 July 2006]: A meeting was scheduled to take place between the hon. Member for Chorley and the Minister of State for Health on Monday 5 June at 8 p.m. in Interview Room 1, Portcullis House. The meeting was postponed. The Minister of State for Health had hoped to offerthe hon. Member further dates for this meeting on the evenings of 12 and 19 June but was prevented from doing so by parliamentary business.
Another meeting was arranged on 22 June. Representatives of the hon. Member attended.
Mr. Moss: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which NHS establishments Ministers in her Department have visited in North East Cambridgeshire constituency in the last 12 months. [85981]
Andy Burnham: Departmental Ministers have not visited any national health service establishments in the North East Cambridgeshire constituency in the last 12 months. However, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health visited Hinchingbrooke Hospital, Huntingdon on 26 May 2005 and Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Mental Health Partnership Trust in Fulborne on 26 June 2006.
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for Health which NHS establishments Ministers in her Department have visited in East Yorkshire constituency in the last 12 months. [85324]
Mr. Ivan Lewis [holding answer 17 July 2006]: My hon. Friend, Ms Caroline Flint, Minister of State for Public Health visited health trainers from East and West Hull primary care trusts on 23 March 2006.
Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make an assessment of recent research by the Wake Forest University School of Medicine in North Carolina on a possible link between the MMR triple vaccine and autism and bowel disease in children; and if she will make a statement. [84799]
Caroline
Flint: The recent study by the Wake Forest University
School of Medicine into a possible link between the triple vaccine and
autism and bowel
disease in children (the Krigsman study) cannot be given credibility
since it did not include any control groups. The same investigation in
Dr Wakefield’s own laboratories showed no evidence of measles
virus in bowel tissue from autistic children. Several properly
conducted studies that include control groups, have failed to find
measles virus persisting in the blood cells of autistic children and
therefore we believe that there remains no convincing epidemiological
or virological evidence for measles, mumps and rubella playing a part
in causing autism.
Lorely Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how often her Department reviews medical evidence which forms the basis for blood donation rules that (a) permanently exclude men who have had sex with men and (b) temporarily exclude female sexual partners of those men; when the last review of the medical evidence was carried out; and when the next review is scheduled to take place. [76928]
Caroline Flint: Donor selection criteria are set by the Joint UK Blood Transfusion Services and National Institute of Biological Standards and Control Professional Advisory Committee (JPAC). The rules regarding blood donation are guided by epidemiological data relating to the United Kingdom and are regularly subject to review.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when her Department will invite primary care trusts to take part in the national procurement process. [84462]
Andy Burnham: An advert was submitted to the Official Journal of the European Union on 13 July which notified of a national procurement of management and support services to help deliver primary care trusts’ (PCT) commissioning obligations.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to her Department's press release of 29 June, on NHS bursaries, what size bursary uplift (a) nursing, (b) midwifery, (c) medical, (d) dental and (e) allied health professional students received in each year since 1997. [84020]
Ms
Rosie Winterton: The table shows the national health
service bursary rates for the basic awards, not including additional
allowances, for the period 1997 to
2007 and the annual percentage increases. The majority of nurses and
midwives receive the non-means tested bursary. Medical and dental
students and the majority of allied health professional students
receive the means-tested NHS bursary. The NHS bursary scheme has
supported allied health professional students since 1998 and medical
and dental undergraduate students since September 2002 from their fifth
and subsequent years of study. During the first four years’ of
study medical and dental students receive support under the Department
for Education and Skills
regulations.
| Basic NHS bursary rates for academic years 1997-98 to 2006-07 | |||||||||||||
| 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-2000 | 2000-01 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | ||||
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) when she intends to publish her Department’s framework for commissioning, practice-based commissioning and the national contract template for 2007-08; [84453]
Ms Rosie Winterton: On Friday 14 July, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Health made a written statement announcing the publication of “Health Reform in England: Update and Commissioning Framework”. This document contains a detailed commissioning framework, which includes proposals for strengthening practice based commissioning and a new model of contracting. It also provides updates on the future of provider reform, workforce development and system management and regulation. A copy of the framework is available in the Library.
Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the Answer of 26 June 2006, Official Report, columns 231-2W, on NHS Direct, what proportion of total NHS Direct sites the proposed closure of 12 sites represents; and what proportion of the total NHS Direct workforce 573 posts represents. [81937]
Ms Rosie Winterton: NHS Direct currently has 54 sites. A number of the 12 sites proposed for closure, representing 22 per cent. of the estate, are small and do not provide suitable accommodation that meets the future needs of NHS Direct for either facilities or good support for staff through supervision.
Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) what assessment her Department has made of the impact of NHS Direct on front line services; and if she will make a statement; [81974]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The proposals set out in the consultation document are designed to ensure that NHS Direct can continue to provide a high quality service to patients and can improve the value for money offered to commissioners and to taxpayers. The proposals aim to increase efficiency of NHS Direct operations, improve the patient experience, improve the working experience for staff, and make better use of specialist skills throughout the organisation. NHS Direct recognise that this is a difficult time for staff and are working to ensure that all staff have the opportunity to comment on the proposals, through formal and informal means, as well as working closely with union representatives.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will make a statement on the progress of the review by her Department of the financial support available to students studying for employment in the NHS. [83683]
Ms Rosie Winterton: We have started to review the national health service bursary scheme, in particular to ensure it complies with age discrimination and eligibility legislation. We will also introduce a formal policy to pay for students absent due to maternity and childbirth to replace the current interim arrangements. A consultative meeting has taken place with the Royal College of Nursing, Unison and the British Medical Association. Further meetings are planned during the summer with student representatives and other stakeholders.
Mr. Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what additional net resources will be available to the NHS in 2006-07 after taking into account (a) NHS inflation and (b) the 2005-06 deficit. [58168]
Andy Burnham: There will be £6,540 million additional net resources available to the national health service in 2006-07. This represents a real terms increase of 5.8 per cent. on NHS expenditure in 2005-06. This growth takes into account the 2005-06 deficit position. The following able provides the total net NHS expenditure in each of the years.
| 2005-06 (Estimated outturn) | 2006-07 (Plan) | |
Percentage increase (real-gross domestic product deflator 29 March) |
These figures are as reported in Department Report 2006 (DR2006) Table 3.4.
Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the capital underspend was for the NHS in 2005-06; and whether her Department plans to redirect the underspend to health authorities with financial deficits. [87114]
Andy Burnham: The 2005-06 provisional outturn is the most recently published data on the national health service financial position. This data shows that the provisional capital underspend in 2005-06 was £1,162 million.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to her oral statement of 30 January 2006, Official Report, column 22, on health and social care services, what progress she has made in developing an NHS life check. [84641]
Caroline Flint: We have made good progress developing the national health service life check. Following a very successful stakeholder workshop there will initially be NHS life checks for three key life stages: early years, adolescence, and mid-life.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the written statement of 11 June 2006, Official Report, column 64WS, on the NHS Litigation Authority, for what reasons the NHS Litigation Authority achieved an underspend of £205 million in 2005-06; and whether she expects the change in the discount rate in 2005-06 to lead to additional costs for the Authority in future years. [86211]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The NHS Litigation Authority (NHSLA) forecasts in advance the likely claims expenditure and number of new claims reported to the schemes, neither of which is controlled by the NHSLA. The major impacting factor on the NHSLA’s resource limit is the level of claims reported to the schemes. In 2005-06 fewer claims were made than forecast, meaning fewer new provisions and therefore an underspend in resource terms. As a consequence, NHSLA actuarial advisors reviewed the incurred but not reported provisions which led to a reduction in the resource requirement in year.
Mr. Dismore: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many staff (a) have been and (b) were expected to be made redundant (i) voluntarily and (ii) compulsorily at (A) Barnet primary care trust, (B) Barnet Chase Farm trust, (C) Royal Free trust and (D) Northwick Park; and if she will make a statement. [84351]
Ms Rosie Winterton: This information is not collected centrally.
Dr. Desmond Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what mechanisms are in place to allow health trusts to consider long-term cost effectiveness when making purchasing decisions following the introduction of the supply chain excellence programme. [86402]
Andy Burnham: The supply chain excellence programme approach to procurement is to blend national health service clinical expertise with best in-class procurement methodology. This methodology includes a review of whole-life costs, where appropriate, of the goods and services the NHS uses.
Dr. Desmond Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment she has made of the potential impact of the NHS supply chain excellence programme on the uptake and use of medical technology in the NHS. [86403]
Andy Burnham: It is expected that the supply chain excellence programme will have a positive impact on the uptake and use of medical technology in the national health service.
Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will introduce financial management training for chief executives of NHS trusts which are in financial deficit. [86377]
Andy Burnham: All NHS chief executives, as accountable officers, need the skills and experience to ensure proper financial controls are in place and that all resources are well managed. This is assessed as part of the appointment process.
Justine Greening: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when the cost per quality-adjusted life-year used by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) in assessing cost effectiveness was originally established; whether she plans to have NICE raise it in line with price inflation; and if she will make a statement. [87746]
Andy Burnham: The cost per quality-adjusted-life-year calculation is one of the factors that informs the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) when reaching a decision on the clinical and cost effectiveness of health technologies. NICE does not have a set limit. NICE'S approach to appraising clinical and cost-effectiveness is set out in its methods guide published in April 2004 and available on its website at:
www.nice.org.uk
Dr. Desmond Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what mechanisms are in place to ensure that the guidance resulting from National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence technology appraisals is implemented across the whole NHS within three months; and if she will make a statement. [86404]
Andy
Burnham: Strategic health authorities manage the national
health service locally on behalf of the Secretary of State. They hold
all local NHS organisations (apart from NHS foundation trusts) to
account for performance and make sure national priorities—for
example, National Institute for Health
and Clinical Excellence (NICE) guidance—are integrated into local
health service
plans.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when she expects to publish the review of non-medical professional regulation being undertaken by her Department’s Director of Workforce. [85784]
Andy Burnham: The Department published its review of non-medical regulation on 14 July, at the same time as the Chief Medical Officer published his review of medical regulation. A joint public consultation has been launched on the recommendations, which closes on 10 November 2006. Copies of the consultation document, both reports and other related documents are available in the Library.
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate she has made of the number of non-practising medically qualified doctors in the UK. [85524]
Ms Rosie Winterton: This information is not collected centrally.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures are being taken to ensure that all food labels clearly indicate whether foods contain nuts. [84264]
Caroline
Flint: The provisions of Directive 2003/89/EC require
that, as from 25 November 2005, a
specified list of allergenic foods, including nuts and peanuts, have to
be clearly declared on the label whenever they are used in all
pre-packed food, including alcoholic
drinks.
Mr. Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Health if she will introduce proposals to change the practice of osteopaths determining the profession’s own standards (a) of training, (b) of practice and (c) for access to the statutory register. [80389]
Andy Burnham: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given 16 June 2006, Official Report, column 1565W.
Mr. Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much has been spent by her Department on private finance initiative schemes in the last nine years; and how many of those schemes have been completed on time. [85415]
Andy Burnham: Information on completed private finance initiative projects which have opened late is not routinely collected centrally. To provide such information for each of the past nine years would incur disproportionate costs.
| Prioritised PFI schemes by financial and operational (defined as first patient day) date | ||||
| Strategic health authority | NHS trust | Financial close/tender award date | Operational date | Capital value (£ million) |
County Durham and Darlington Acute Hospitals—Bishop Auckland | ||||
| All other non prioritised PFI schemes over £10 million by financial and operational (defined as first patient) date | ||||
| Strategic health authority | NHS trust | Financial close/tender award date | Operational date | Capital value (£ million) |
County Durham and Darlington Acute Hospitals—Chester-le-street | ||||
Mr. Paice: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what percentage of parishes in (a) rural and (b) urban areas have a pharmacy. [85133]
Andy Burnham: This information is not held centrally.
Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) which NHS trusts are recruiting new junior physiotherapists in 2006-07; [87409]
Ms Rosie Winterton: This information is not collected centrally.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether she has established an expert group on preventative health spending. [84465]
Caroline Flint: The White Paper “Our health, our care, our say: a new direction for Community Services” sets out a vision to provide people with good quality social care and national health service services in the communities where they live.
Mr. Lansley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health pursuant to the answer of 13 February 2006, Official Report, column 1792W, on primary care trusts, what the overall level of investment in enhanced services by primary care trusts (PCTs) was in 2005-06; what the originally planned level of national investment in enhanced services by PCTs was; and if she will make a statement. [85828]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The overall level of national investment in enhanced services by primary care trusts (PCTs) in 2005-06 is forecast to be £649 million. The planned level of national investment (known as the enhanced service floor) was £676 million.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much money was recovered by hospitals from insurers towards the cost of treatment of persons injured in road accidents in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available. [83767]
Ms Rosie Winterton: Hospitals have for more than70 years been able to recover the costs of providing treatment to the victims of road traffic accidents where the injured person successfully claims personal injury compensation from the person responsible for causing the injury, through their insurer. However, the Road Traffic (NHS Charges) Act 1999 introduced a streamlined, centralised recovery scheme, operated by the compensation recovery unit, part of the Department for Work and Pensions, on behalf of the Secretary of State. Recoveries since that scheme was introduced in April 1999 are as shown in the table.
| Amount recovered (£) | |
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of skin cancer there have been in each constituency in each of the last five years, broken down by (a) age and (b) sex. [86530]
John Healey: I have been asked to reply.
Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 24 July 2006:
As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking how many cases of skin cancer there have been in each constituency in each of the last five years, broken down by (a) age and (b) sex. [86530]
The latest available figures for newly diagnosed cases of cancer (incidence) are for the year 2003. A table which shows the number of cases of melanoma skin cancer by age and sex for each parliamentary constituency in England, for the years 1999 to 2003, has been placed in the House of Commons Library.
Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment has been made of the effects of treating children with speech and language difficulties in (a) inclusive settings and (b) on a one-to-one basis; and if she will make a statement. [87150]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: No assessment has been carried out centrally. It is for primary care trusts in partnership with strategic health authorities, local authorities and other local stakeholders to determine how best to use their funds to meet national and local priorities for improving health, tackling health inequalities and modernising services. This process provides the means for addressing local needs within the health community including the provision of speech and language therapy.
Mr. Walter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate has been made of the number of staff who have been (a) made redundant, (b) redeployed and (c) prematurely retired as a result of the amalgamation of strategic health authorities; and what the financial cost of these redundancies and early retirements has been. [86589]
Ms Rosie Winterton [holding answer 20 July 2006]: There will be a number of redundancies in strategic health authorities following the restructuring brought about by “Commissioning a Patient-Led NHS”. However until the detail of the new arrangements is agreed, it is difficult to make accurate forecasts.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many cases of syphilis have been reported in each London borough in each of the last five years. [84223]
Caroline Flint: Data on the number of sexually transmitted infections for 2005 for each region were published in ‘Diagnoses of selected 577s by region, sex and age group United Kingdom: 1996-2005’, by the Health Protection Agency on 4 July. A copy of the document is available in the Library. The report is freely available from their website at:
www.hpa.org.uk/infections/topics_az/hiv_and_sti/epidemiology/datatables2005.htm.
Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what guidelines her Department provides to hospital trusts on the use of mobile telephones by patients in hospitals. [82270]
Andy Burnham: The use of mobile telephones and other communication equipment in close proximity to certain electrically sensitive medical equipment is not advised, as the consequences of disrupting such equipment may cause direct harm to patients.
David Wright: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when she will make detailed guidance available to NHS research and development departments on the implementation of the regulations in relation to UK Emergency Care Research and the introduction of the Medicine for Human Use (Clinical Trials) Regulations 2004; and if she will make a statement. [87344]
Andy Burnham: I refer my hon. Friend to the reply given to the hon. Member for Wyre Forest (Dr. Taylor), on 10 July 2006, Official Report, columns 1619-20W. An amendment is under consideration which would allow researchers to enter incapacitated adults into trials of medicines for emergency treatments which have to be administered before there is time to obtain the consent of a legal representative. A further announcement will be made in the autumn.
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many people had their posts on the Vocational General Practice Training Scheme suspended due to the Deanery’s financial situation in each of the last five years for which figures are available. [84363]
Ms Rosie Winterton: In 2004-05, seven trainee general practitioners had their training deferred for six months, from August 2004 to February 2005, to help with the financial situation at London Deanery. This is the only time that this has happened in the last five years. In 2006-07, 29 trainees are having their training deferred until February 2007 but this is because fewer doctors have left their training posts than expected. All 29 have now been offered or have found alternative employment until February 2007.
Dr. Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures have been put in place to safeguard places on the Vocational General Practice Training Scheme in the event of a budget overspend by the Deanery. [84364]
Ms Rosie Winterton: The priorities for investment of education and training funding are a matter for local strategic health authorities (SHAs), working with their deaneries in respect of medical education. This is therefore essentially a local matter for the SHA and their deanery to determine. We have been assured however that there is no intention to cut the number of funded training places on the London Deanery vocational general practice training scheme.
Mr. Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what strategy the Department is using to extend weight management services to all who wish to access them; and what incentives are available to GPs to offer these services. [85876]
Caroline Flint: The White Papers “Choosing Health” and “Our Health, Our Care, Our Say”, set out a range of action to improve health and tackle obesity. The Department has published tools to support frontline health professionals in managing obesity locally and extend weight loss services. These include: “Guidance to Primary Care Trusts on Weighing and Measuring Children; an Obesity Care Pathway; a Weight Loss Guide; and a Patient Activity Questionnaire for over 16’s”. These tools were released in April and May this year and copies are available in the Library.
Hugh Bayley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many (a) medical, (b) nursing and (c) other professional staff were employed by York NHS Trust and NHS primary care services in Selby and York in 1996-97; and how many in each category are employed by York Hospital and Selby and York primary care trust (PCT), including the mental health services staff transferred from the hospital to the PCT. [86523]
Mr. Ivan Lewis: The information requested is shown in the following tables.
| National health service staff ( 1, 2, 3, 4) by specified organisation within the North and East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire strategic health authority (SHA) | |||
| Number (headcount)( 5) | |||
| 1997 | |||
| North and East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire Q11 | York Hospitals NHS Trust RCB | Selby and York Primary Care Trust (PCT) 5E2 | |
All Hospital and community health services (HCHS) medical and dental staff(3) | |||
| Number (headcount)( 5) | |||
| 2005 | |||
| North and East Yorkshire and Northern Lincolnshire Q11 | York Hospitals NHS Trust RCB | Selby and York Primary Care Trust PCT 5E2 | |
All Hospital and community health services (HCHS) medical and dental staff(3) | |||
| n/a
= Not available (1) General medical practitioners (excluding retainers) includes contracted GPs, CMS Others, personal medical services (PMS) others and GP registrars. Prior to September 2004 this group included general medical services (GMS) unrestricted principals, PMS contracted GPs, PMS salaried GPs, restricted principals, assistants, GP registrars, salaried doctors (Para 52 SFA), PMS other, flexible career scheme GPs and GP returners. (2) Practice staff includes practice nurses, direct patient care, admin and clerical, and other. (3) Excludes medical hospital practitioners and medical clinical assistants, most of whom are GPs working part time in hospitals (4) GP retainers were first collected in 1999 and have been omitted for comparability purposes (5) GP data as at 1 October 1997-1999, 30 September 2000-2005, HCHS Medical and Dental data as at 30 September each year, Non-Medical data as at 30 Source: The Information Centre for health and social care medical and dental workforce census The Information Centre for health and social care general and personal medical services statistics The Information Centre for health and social care non-medical workforce census | |||
Mr. Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many alcohol related crimes have (a) been reported and (b) resulted in convictions in Humberside Police Authority area in each of the last nine years; and if he will make a statement. [86908]
Mr. McNulty: From the information collected centrally, it is not possible to identify those offences which are alcohol-related. Such offences are not specifically defined by statute and details of the individual circumstances of offences do not feature in either the recorded crime or court proceedings data series.
David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what research his Department has conducted on the level of anti-social behaviour in local authority areas (a) in England and (b) in Wales. [77788]
John Reid: The following research covers some rather than all local authorities:
A survey of perceptions of antisocial behaviour in 10 trailblazer areas (Birmingham, Brighton and Hove, Bristol, Camden, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Sheffield, Sunderland and Westminster);
A survey of the use of powers to tackle antisocial behaviour among Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership areas; and
The Anti-Social behaviour Unit (ASBU) One Day Count of antisocial behaviour which collected data on all reports of antisocial behaviour made to a range of agencies in September 2003.
www.crimereduction.gov.uk
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what assessment is made of the effectiveness of measures taken to tackle antisocial behaviour in the Vale of Clwyd; [86985]
Mr. McNulty: Although the data is not available in the form requested, we know that there has been a huge response both from practitioners (such as local authorities and the police) and from local communities in taking a stand to tackle antisocial behaviour. The tools and powers we have provided since 1997 are being used widely and wisely.
| Intervention | 1 October 2003 to 30 September 2004 | 1 October 2004 to 30 September 2005 |
| (1)This
is for the period 20 January 2004 to 30 September 2004. The crack house
closure power was introduced in the Anti-social Behaviour Act 2003 and
came into force on 20 January
2004. | ||
Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many acceptable behaviour contracts have been issued in West Lancashire; and if he will make a statement. [83657]
Mr. McNulty: The data is not available in the form requested. However, for the last two years the Home Office Anti-social Behaviour Unit has carried out a survey of Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnerships in England and Community safety Partnerships in Wales asking about their actions taken to tackle antisocial behaviour. From those who responded to the surveys the results are as follows.
Acceptable Behaviour Contracts 1 October 2003 to 30 September 2004—5,094
Acceptable Behaviour Contracts 1 October 2004 to 30 September 2005—8,654
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the recidivism rate of individuals who have received an antisocial behaviour order; and what steps he is taking to reduce the recidivism rate. [86421]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The information requested is not available.
Lynne
Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State
for the Home Department how many incidents of robbery
of a premises with a firearm occurred in each London borough in each of
the last five years.
[86531]
Mr. McNulty: The information requested cannot be provided at a borough level.
| Table A: Offences of robbery recorded by City of London and Metropolitan police in which firearms were reported to have been used by location of offence,2000-01 to 2001-02 | ||
| 2000-01 | 2001-02( 1) | |
| (1
)Figures may have been inflated by some police forces implementing
the principles of the National Crime Recording Standard before 1 April
2002. (2 )These crimes are mostly burglaries where
firearms have been used immediately before, or at the time of stealing
items from a residential property, and in order to steal these items.
If firearms are used in a get-away, then it is classed as a burglary
and will not be included
here. | ||
| Table B: Offences of robbery recorded by City of London and Metropolitan police in which firearms were reported to have been used by location of offence,2002-03 to 2004-05 | |||
| 2002-03( 1) | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | |
| (1
)Figures may have been inflated by some police forces implementing
the principles of the National Crime Recording Standard before 1 April
2002. Figures for some crime categories may have been inflated by
this. (2 )These crimes are mostly burglaries where
firearms have been used immediately before, or at the time of stealing
items from a residential property, and in order to steal these items.
If firearms are used in a get-away, then it is classed as a burglary
and will not be included
here. | |||
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many toilets are provided in the temporary accommodation for visitors to Chelmsford Prison; and how many are connected to the main sewers. [86954]
Mr. Sutcliffe: There are two toilets available in the temporary accommodation for visitors to Chelmsford Prison. One can be used by both able-bodied visitors and those with a disability. The second toilet provides a baby changing facility. Both are connected to the main sewers.
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people each week visited prisoners at Chelmsford Prison on average in the last 12 months; and how many he estimates were children aged (a) up to five, (b) six to 11 and (c) 12 to 16. [86955]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Over the past 12 months there has been an average of 533 visitors per week at Chelmsford. Of these an average of 39 were under five years of age, 15 were aged between six-11 years and 10 were aged between 12-16 years.
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State forthe Home Department when the temporary accommodation for visitors to Chelmsford Prison was installed; and for how long it was expected to last. [86958]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The first portacabin was installed seven years ago and the second three years ago to accommodate increasing numbers of visitors. The portacabins were always intended to provide a long term facility.
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to provide permanent facilities for visitors to Chelmsford Prison; and if he will make a statement. [86959]
Mr. Sutcliffe: As part of a larger £36 million development, a new purpose-built facility is currently under construction and should be available from December 2006.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many safe beds are available for child prisoners. [86240]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The term “safe beds” is not used in the young people’s estate, but there are several design specifications that make rooms safer in terms of protecting young people from self-harm. The different specifications reflect improvements in design over time. Information on the number of rooms of the different safer specifications is not held centrally.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the rollout of the TETRA mast network; and what plans the Government has to ensure inter-operability and improve communications between the police and the other emergency services. [86846]
Mr.
McNulty: Airwave is the new radio communications system
for the police service in England, Wales and Scotland. The rollout of
the TETRA mast network is the responsibility of O2 Airwave who own the
network. The network is already in place. Officers across the country
using the network
are able to communicate directly with each other, regardless of
location. The other emergency services are currently updating their
radio communications networks on a national basis and will also be
using the Airwave service. When their new systems are fully operational
their communications systems will interoperate seamlessly with the
police network. Existing interoperability arrangements on the old
radios used by the services will be maintained until the new systems
are fully
operational.
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of community punishments in each region were completed in each year since 2001; in how many cases a period of imprisonment was then imposed for the original offence; and if he will make a statement. [86951]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Information for England and Wales on the completion rates the main types of community sentence, for each year since 1994, can be found in Table 5.1 of the Home Office Statistical Bulletin: Offender Management Caseload Statistics 2004, a copy of which can be found in the House of Commons Library. Information on the numbers and percentages of those given immediate custody for breach of the main types of community sentence can be found in Table 5.5 of the same publication. Provisional data on completion rates in 2005 has been published in the latest Offender Management Caseload Quarterly Brief (October to December 2005) which is available on the Home Office website. The reliability of this data at the regional level is not sufficiently robust for publication.
Mrs. Iris Robinson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police community support officers are in training; what the cost is per person for such training; and if he will make a statement. [86313]
Mr. McNulty: The information requested is not collected centrally.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police community support officers are employed in Lancashire. [88269]
Mr. McNulty: At the end of September 2005 Lancashire constabulary had 159 police community support officers (PCSOs). With the additional funding we are providing in 2006-07 Lancashire has a target to reach a total of 417 PCSOs by April 2007.
Mr. Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many police community support officers were in training in Humberside Police Authority area on the last date for which figures are available; and if he will make a statement. [86905]
Mr. McNulty: Humberside Police are currently in the process of training 34 police community support officers (PCSOs). They expect to train 195 during 2006-07.
Mr. Gale: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what consideration he has given to a re-assignment of the duties of the inspectorate responsible for controlled drugs; and if he will make a statement. [87264]
Mr. Coaker: The Home Office continues to examine ways of improving and streamlining existing Home Office licensing and inspection activities but no final decisions have yet been made.
Mr.
Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State
for the Home Department when he will reply to the hon.
Member for North-West Norfolk’s correspondence of 30 January
regarding the handling of complaints by the Prison Service about prison
governors.
[66562]
Mr. Sutcliffe: I met with the hon. Gentleman on 12 July to discuss the various issues raised in his correspondence. I will write to him shortly to cover a range of related matters.
Mr. Pickles: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average Band D police precept on council tax was in each year since 1997-98 in (a) England, (b) Wales and (c) England and Wales. [66294]
Mr. McNulty: The information is set out in the following table:
| Average Band D council tax of police authorities for England and Wales in real terms at 2004-05 prices | ||||||||||
| £ | ||||||||||
| 1997-98 | 1998-99 | 1999-00 | 2000-01 | 2001-02 | 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | |
| (1)
Real Term values calculated using Treasury GDP deflators as at March
2006 Notes: England figures exclude the City of London Source: Office of the Deputy Prime Minister and National Assembly for Wales | ||||||||||
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) males and (b) females were sent to prison for non-payment of council tax in each year since 1993, broken down by age group. [83786]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Information on number of prisoners received into prison under non-criminal categories of imprisonment is to be found in table 7.10 of Offender Management Caseload Statistics 2004. This is a web-only table and can be found at http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/omcs.html
Mr. Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will extend the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme to British victims of terrorist attacks abroad. [83284]
Mr. Sutcliffe: We have no plans to extend the scope of the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme to cover injuries sustained abroad. However, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport are developing proposals for establishing a charitable fund to help victims of terrorist attacks overseas, and hope to be able to announce further details in the coming months.
| Number of offenders found guilty at all courts for offences relating to drunkenness in Suffolk police force area( 1,2 ) 1997 to 2004 | |
| Offence description — drunkenness with aggravation( 3) | |
| (1)
These data are on the principal offence basis. (2)
Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate
and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have
been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the
courts, and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to
ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are
taken into account when those data are used. (3
)Includes the offence of “drunk and disorderly”
(Criminal Justice Act 1967 sec. 91) and other miscellaneous offences of
drunkenness with aggravations. Source: Office
for Criminal Justice
Reform | |
Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what average period elapsed between sentencing and tariff setting in each year since 1997. [86054]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The information requested is notheld centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many and what percentage of children and young adults (a) on remand and (b) after conviction have been placed in custody more than 100 miles from their home. [86205]
Mr. Sutcliffe: In October 2005, the latest date for which figures are available, 40 young people under 18 and 49 18 to 20-year-olds were placed on remand or committal for sentence more than 100 miles from home. Expressed as a percentage, 7.7 per cent. of unconvicted under-18-year-olds and 4.1 per cent. of unconvicted 18 to 20-year-olds were placed more than 100 miles from home.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the number and percentage of children and young adults with a mental illness while in custody in (a) 1985, (b) 1995 and (c) 2005. [86224]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The information is not available in the form requested. A survey of psychiatric morbidity among prisoners in England and Wales in 1997, by the Office for National Statistics, examined for five types of mental disorder: personality disorder; psychosis; neurotic disorder; drug dependence; and hazardous drinking. A copy is available in the Library.
Psychiatric Morbidity Amongst Prisoners in England and Wales (ONS, 1998)
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many incidents of self-harm and abuse of children and young adults in custody have been recorded (a) in the past 12 months and (b) since 2000, broken down by sex of victim. [86243]
Mr.
Sutcliffe: The information available centrally is
incomplete and could be misleading, because different categories of
secure establishment have used different counting methods. The Youth
Justice Board is currently working with the Prison Service, operators
of
secure training centres and secure children's homes to agree common
recording standards and reporting practices for statistical data. We
believe this will both improve the quality and increase the range of
available aggregated information about young people in
custody.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many children and young adults are in custody, broken down by (a) ethnic origin and (b) religious belief. [86249]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Information on (a) the ethnic origin and (b) the religious beliefs of the population in prison establishments in England and Wales by age group is given in the web-only tables 8.30 and 8.33 of Offender Management Caseload Statistics 2004, available at the following web address.
http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs05/hosb1705section8.xls
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what draft Bills have been produced by his Department since October 2005; how many were (a) examined and (b) are planned to be examined by (i) a departmental Select Committee and (ii) a Joint Committee; what draft Bills are still to be produced by his Department; when each is expected to be published; how many clauses each has; and if he will make a statement. [81311]
Mr. McNulty: Since October 2005, no draft Bills have been produced by the Home Office.
Chris Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when his Department's War Room was established; how many officials are allocated to it, broken down by grade; what its (a) objectives and (b) purposes are; and if he will make a statement. [81584]
Mr. Byrne: The composition of the team working on the Home Office and the Immigration Nationality Directorate reviews has varied in number and skills week by week as the project moved through phases of work.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the occupancy rate was for each (a) prison, (b) young offenders institution, (c) secure training centre and (d) local authority secure unit in each of the past 20 years. [86248]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Information on the occupancy rate of all prison establishments (including young offender institutions) in England and Wales between 1992 and 2006 can be found in monthly tables held by the House of Commons Library Statistical Resource Unit. Equivalent information for 1986 to 1992 cannot be provided without disproportionate cost.
| Secure children’s homes: occupancy rate at 31 March 1998 | |
| Percentage | |
| Source: Department for Education and Skills | |
| Secure children’s homes: occupancy rate at 31 March 1999 | |
| Percentage | |
| Source: Department for Education and Skills | |
| Secure children’s homes: occupancy rate at 31 March 2000 | |
| Percentage | |
| Source: Department for Education and Skills | |
Mr. Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 29 March 2006, Official Report, column 1035W, on dispersal orders, if he will make it his policy to collect information centrally on the number of dispersal orders authorised. [72665]
Mr. McNulty: We have been collecting the number of authorisations for dispersal powers by police force area since April 2006. This data will be collected on a quarterly basis. Data will be published later this year.
Mr. Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Hornsey and Wood Green (Lynne Featherstone), of 5 June 2006, Official Report, columns 293-4W, on the DNA database, if he will break the figures down by country making the request. [86494]
Joan Ryan: The majority of requests for the exchange of DNA information between the United Kingdom and other countries are routed through the United Kingdom National Central Bureau for Interpol (UK NCB) based at the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA). Other channels may include bi-lateral direct liaison between law enforcement authorities; and formal mutual legal assistance channels. Exchanges of DNA information via these channels will almost always be a response to the needs of a specific criminal investigation.
Mr. Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 2 May 2006, Official Report, column 1409W, on the DNA database, if he will place in the Library the data on use of DNA for crime detection in 2005-06. [86496]
Joan Ryan: Data provided to the Home Office by police forces indicates that there were 20,349 direct DNA detections in 2005-06 i.e. there were 20,349 crimes detected in which a DNA match report was available. In addition, a further 19,960 crimes were detected in 2005-06 as a result of further investigations linked to the original case in which DNA was recovered. This gives a total of 40,309 detections in 2005-06 arising directly or indirectly from the DNA match, compared with 35,605 detections in 2004-05.
Mr. Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) arrests and (b) convictions for drink-driving resulted in custodial sentences in each year since 1997, broken down by police authority. [84913]
Mr. McNulty: The information requested on arrests is not collected centrally. Information taken from the Court Proceedings Database held by the Office for Criminal Justice Reform on convictions and custodial sentences for drink-driving offences by police force area 1997 to 2004 (latest available) is given in the table.
Data for 2005 will be available early in 2007.
| Findings of guilt and immediate custodial sentences at all courts for offences of driving etc. after consuming alcohol or taking drugs by police force area, England and Wales 1997-2004 | ||||||
| Number of offences | ||||||
| 1997 | 1998 | 1999 | ||||
| Findings of guilt | Immediate custody( 1) | Findings of guilt | Immediate custody( 1) | Findings of guilt | Immediate custody( 1) | |
| Number of offences | ||||||
| 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | ||||
| Findings of guilt | Immediate custody( 1) | Findings of guilt | Immediate custody( 1) | Findings of guilt | Immediate custody( 1) | |
| Number of offences | ||||
| 2003 | 2004 | |||
| Findings of guilt | Immediate custody( 1) | Findings of guilt | Immediate custody( 1) | |
| n/a
= not available (1) Immediate custody includes
sentences of Secure Training Order, Detention and Training Order, Young
Offender Institution and Unsuspended sentence of
imprisonment. (2) Staffordshire police force were
only able to submit sample data for persons proceeded against and
convicted in the magistrates courts for the year 2000. Although
sufficient to estimate higher orders of data, these data are not robust
enough at detailed level and have been excluded from the
table. Note: Every effort is made
to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete.
However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted
from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and
police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data
collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into
account when those data are
used. | ||||
Mr. Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of drivers convicted of drink driving (a) received a fine, (b) received a jail sentence and (c) were banned from driving in the last year for which figures areavailable. [85897]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Information taken from theCourt Proceedings Database held by the Office for Criminal Justice Reform is given in the table for 2004 (latest available). Data for 2005 will be available earlyin 2007.
| Findings of guilt at all courts and sentence and order imposed for the offences of ‘driving etc after consuming alcohol or taking drugs’( 1) , England and Wales, 2004 | ||
| Number of offences | ||
| Number | Percentage | |
| (1)
Offences under Road Traffic Act 1988 s4(1) and (2), 5(1a) and (b),
6(4), 7(6), and s7A as added by Police Reform Act 2002
s56. (2) Immediate custody = detention and training
order, young offender institution and unsuspended sentence of
imprisonment. (3) Secondary
disposal. Note: Every effort is made to ensure
that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is
important to note that these data have been extracted from large
administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces.
As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection
processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when
these data are
used. | ||
Sir Peter Soulsby: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many convictions there have been for drug offences in Leicester South constituency in each of the last three years for which figures are available, broken down by local authority ward. [86370]
Mr. McNulty: Drug offence data cannot be broken down by constituency or to a more local level. Available data relate to persons found guilty of drug offences at Leicester's crown, magistrate and youth courts and are given in the following table.
| Persons( 1) found guilty of drug offences in Leicester, 2002 to 2004 | |
| Number | |
| (1)
Where a person is found guilty of two or more drugs offences at the
same court appearance the sentence or order shown in this table is the
most severe
penalty. | |
Mr. Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the reasons are for the differences between figures given in the England and Wales Findings Paper 265 and the latest Home Office Drug Seizures and Offenders Statistical bulletin in relation to seizures of methadone in 2000 and cocaine and heroin in 2001. [67894]
Mr. Coaker: After a very thorough review of data, I can confirm that the figures quoted in “Seizures of Drugs in England and Wales 2003” (Findings 265) for the number of seizures of methadone in 2000 (1,010) and both number/quantity of seizures of cocaine (6,530/5,210 kg) and heroin (14,630/4,000 kg) in 2001 are correct.
Mr. Byers: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times prosecutions have been brought by North Tyneside local education authority under section 7 of the Education Act 1996 in each of the last five years. [85376]
Mr. Sutcliffe [holding answer 14 July 2006]: Prosecutions for truancy related to section seven are brought under section 444 of the Education Act 1996.
Court proceedings data for 2005 will be available in autumn of 2006.
David T.C. Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people in England and Wales are electronically tagged; and how many are (a) on the Home Detention Curfew Scheme and (b) under a curfew order passed down by the courts. [75702]
Mr. Sutcliffe: According to the latest figures available, the total number of people who are subject to electronic monitoring in England and Wales is as shown in the table.
| Number | |
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to satisfy himself that the (a) Governor and (b) management team at Feltham Young Offender Institution are able to carry out the recommendations of the Mubarek Report. [84403]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Mr. Justice Keith’s report into the death of Zahid Mubarek contains recommendationsto be implemented by the National Offender Management Service, Court Service, Department of Health, Department for Communities and Local Government and the police.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) prosecutions and (b) fixed penalty notices were issued to drivers of commercial vehicles in each London borough in the last year for which figures are available. [87378]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Information collected centrally by my department on motoring offences does not distinguish between the characteristics of the vehicles involved.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many foreign national prisoners have claimed to be from (a) Russia, (b) Romania, (c) Georgia, (d) Armenia, (e) Azerbaijan, (f) Ukraine, (g) China, (h) Belarus, (i) Iceland, (j) the United States, (k) Canada, (l) Antarctica, (m) Argentina, (n) Chile, (o) Peru, (p) Ecuador, (q) Bolivia, (r) Brazil, (s) Uruguay, (t), Paraguay, (u) Angola, (v) Namibia, (w) Botswana, (x) Zambia, (y) Burundi, (z) Tanzania and (aa) Malawi (i) on being sentenced to a custodial sentence and (ii) on arrival in custody in each of the last nine years for which figures are available. [82237]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Information on the number of foreign nationals who have claimed to be from the countries listed at (a)-(aa) (i) on being sentenced to a custodial sentence, and (ii) on arrival in custody in each of the last nine years is not held centrally.
1997-2002: Table 6.2 of Prison Statistics England and Wales 1997 to 2002, available from the House of Commons Library.
2003: Table 8.27 of the web tables for Offender Management Caseload Statistics 2003.
2004: Table 8.27 of the web tables for Offender Management Caseload Statistics 2004.
2005: Detailed web table 2.14 of Population in Custody Quarterly Brief April to June 2005.
These web tables are available at the following web address.
Information is not presented separately for the following nationalities:-
Antarctica—this is not a recognised nationality and any such records are included in unrecorded/other in the statistical tables;
Ukraine and Belarus are not recorded separately on the current prison IT systems and are included in Russia;
Dr. Vis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many foreign national prisoners in each open prison were moved into closed prisons in (a) May and (b) June. [86629]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The information is not available in the form requested and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Jim Cousins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what account the Serious Organised Crime Agency (SOCA) will take of the National Fraud Strategy in planning its work; and whether SOCA will have specific targets for the prevention and reduction of fraud. [75258]
Mr. Coaker: We need to have a coherent strategy for preventing, detecting and bringing fraud to justice that meets our current need; this issue has been considered by the wide ranging cross Government Review of Fraud. The Home Secretary’s letter setting priorities for the Serious Organised Crime Agency in its first three years of operation has been laid before Parliament. The priorities set out there include tackling organised crime threats from fraud against individuals and the private sector. The SOCA Board has subsequently determined that approximately 10 per cent. of its overall effort should be devoted to this area.
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the (a) reliability and (b) usefulness of headcam technology in tackling crime; if he will make resources available to make this technology more widely available to the police; and if he will make a statement. [86256]
Mr. McNulty [holding answer 19 July 2006]: The potential for this technology to assist in tackling crime is recognised. The Police Standards Unit, supported by the Home Office Scientific Development Branch and the Police Information Technology Organisation is consequently organising and funding a six-month trial to evaluate reliability, usefulness and other aspects. The trial is planned to commence on 1 September 2006 in conjunction with Devon and Cornwall constabulary, with the intention of establishing good practice and procedure by the end of the year.
Paul Flynn: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the Government’s policy on reducing the supply of heroin and cocaine was informed by the Strategy Unit Phase one Drugs Report of 2003; and if he will make a statement. [85575]
Mr. Coaker: The report was submitted as a contribution to a debate across Government on drug strategy, and influenced the revised supply side strategy, adopted in 2004, which has as its objective the reduction of the harms caused by drug supply to UK communities.
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations he has received from (a) the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and (b) the security services on the proscription of Hizb-Ut-Tahrir; and if he will make a statement. [69261]
Mr. McNulty: We do not comment on individual groups that may be possible candidates for proscription.
Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what training is provided by HM Prison Service to governor grade staff on authorising release of prisoners (a) under the Criminal Justice Acts, (b) on temporary licence and (c) on home detention curfew; and whether this training is mandatory. [85480]
Mr.
Sutcliffe: For the information about training provided by
the Prison Service to governor gradestaff, I refer the hon.
Member to the answer given on
5 June 2006, Official Report, column 295W. Since February 2003 no
training has been described as mandatory: training is provided when
necessary to enable an individual to fulfil a
role.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the number of honour crimes committed in each London borough in each of the last five years. [83679]
Mr. McNulty: Estimates on the number of honour crimes are not available from the recorded crime statistics.
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps are being taken by his Department to raise awareness of human trafficking amongst the clients of prostitutes. [81612]
Mr. Coaker: On 5 January 2006, the Home Office launched a three month national consultation exercise on proposals for a UK action plan on human trafficking. A summary of responses report was published on 21 June. A number of respondents commented on the issue of raising awareness amongst those who pay for sexual services of the consequences of having sexual intercourse with a trafficked person. We intend to consider the consultation responses over the next few months with the aim of producing a final UK Action Plan by the end of the year.
John Bercow: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of raising awareness of human trafficking amongst the clients of prostitutes. [81613]
Mr.
Coaker: The recent consultation exercise on proposals for
the UK Action Plan included questions on how to reduce demand for the
services of trafficked persons. As part of the development of the final
UK Action Plan consideration will be given to how awareness campaigns
can be monitored for their effectiveness. During the course of
Operation Pentameter internet websites for users of prostitutes were
monitored. The monitoring demonstrated that
there was an increased awareness of the issue as a direct result of the
activity undertaken by Operation
Pentameter.
Mr. Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) police and (b) government officials have been seconded to the source countries of victims of human trafficking to discuss and implement prevention strategies in the last five years; and how many reciprocated secondments of staff there have been from those countries. [82668]
Mr. Coaker: It would not be appropriate to comment on the operational deployment of law enforcement staff involved in the prevention of serious organised crime.
Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) what recent meetings he has had with other members of the Government to discuss tackling identity fraud; [86649]
Joan Ryan: Work on identity fraud reduction is led by the Identity Fraud Steering Committee (IFSC) and supported by the Identity Fraud Forum (IFF). The IFSC and IFF members come from the police, academia, the private sector and Government Departments. The IFSC and the IFF meet regularly to take forward the Government’s work on reducing identity fraud, and to co-ordinate this activity across all sectors. A number of sub-groups meets on a regular basis to identify, scope and prioritise opportunities to reduce identity fraud.
Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action has been taken by his Department to tackle identity fraud since July 2005; and what action is planned between July 2006 andJuly 2007. [86653]
Joan Ryan: The Identity Fraud Steering Committee (IFSC) was established in 2003 to lead a cross public/private sector work programme to tackle identity fraud and there has been a great deal of activity to reduce identity fraud in the last year.
Mr. Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department (1) how much his Department spent on tackling identity fraud through public awareness campaigns in 1997 in each (a) year since and (b) month since July 2005; [86654]
(2) what advice his Department has issued to the public on steps to combat identity fraud. [86651]
Joan Ryan: The Home Office became responsible for identity fraud in 2003 following the Cabinet Office report Identity Fraud: A Study, published in 2002. We established the Identity Fraud Steering Committee (IFSC) to lead a public-private sector work programme to tackle identity fraud. The IFSC set up a website www.identitytheft.org.uk which explains to the public how to keep personal information safe, how to get help if one is the victim of identity theft, and what is being done to tackle this growing crime. The website was set up and is maintained without Government funding.
Mr. Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people in Humberside police authority area were (a) charged with and (b) victims of identity fraud in each of the last nine years; and if he will make a statement. [86907]
Joan Ryan: The Government take the problem of identity fraud very seriously. There is no single offence of identity fraud. On seven June 2006 we brought into force sections 25 and 26 of the Identity Cards Act 2006 which created new criminal offences of being in possession or control of false identity documents. These offences relate to a wide range of identity documents, including passports, driving licences, ID cards and immigration documents. The maximum penalty is 10 years imprisonment for an offence of possession with intent to use the document for establishing registrable facts about another person, such as name, address, date of birth and other personal details, and two years imprisonment for possession without reasonable excuse. Investigation of offences under these provisions is already under way and statistics on the number of prosecutions and convictions will be published in due course.
David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Immigration and Nationality Directorate officials failed security checks subsequent to their first day of employment in the Directorate in each year since 1997. [73692]
John Reid: It is not possible to provide this information in the form requested.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Government expects to conclude its review of the use of intercept evidence in court; and if he will make a statement. [86805]
Mr. McNulty: As my right hon. Friend, the Home Secretary, told the House on 11 July 2006, Official Report, column 1312, further Home Office-led work on possible legal models for evidential use of intercept will report to Ministers in November.
Mr. David Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether there is a permanent police presence at John Lennon International Airport, Liverpool. [69433]
Mr. McNulty: John Lennon International Airport is not designated for policing purposes under the Aviation Security Act 1982. There is therefore no statutory requirement for the Chief Constable of Merseyside police to provide a permanent police presence. The level and nature of the policing resource at the airport is at the discretion of the Chief Constable.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the number of vulnerable and at-risk children and young adults in (a) young offender institutions, (b) secure training centres and (c) local authority secure units. [86277]
Mr. Sutcliffe: An initial assessment of vulnerability of under-18 offenders is carried out, before sentence, by the youth offending team . Figures provided by the Youth Justice Board show that during the period April 2004 to March 2005 the number of young people who were assessed as vulnerable in this way and subsequently placed in a young offender institution was 3,370. All young people placed in a secure training centre or a secure children's home are considered vulnerable, either on account of their age or because of other risk factors.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department where each local authority secure unit is located; and how many places are available in each. [86278]
| Places approved at 31 March 2005 by individual secure children's home—England and Wales | ||
| Name of secure children’s home | Location | Number of places approved |
| Notes: 1. Numbers have been rounded to the nearest 5. 2. Numbers
between 1 and 4 are shown as a dash. 3. Redbank includes three
units: Newton House, Vardy House and Willows House. 4. At
March 2005 all homes were LA managed apart from St. Catherines which
was managed by a voluntary provider. 5. Orchard Lodge
transferred to an independent provider in March 2006. 6. The
figures are from the 2004-05 DfES annual survey of secure children's
homes
(SA1). | ||
Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many motorists have been caught speeding in the roadworks on the slip road of junction seven of the M56 since 2001; and what total amount of fines they have paid. [84884]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Information on speeding fines paid in respect of offences at specific locations is not held centrally.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what measures are taken by the Prison Service to liaise with mental health authorities to ensure continuity of care and post-release treatment for former prisoners with mental illnesses. [86232]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Offenders with identified mental health problems are subject to the Care Programme Approach (CPA) during their stay in prison and on release. CPA enables the planning of treatment and continuity of mental health care for the individual. It is supported in prisons through NHS mental health teams, comprising over 360 staff in England. This means that on release from prison offenders needing CPA should have a care plan and, pre-release, the prison mental health in-reach team inform and share information with the individual’s local GP.
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the five most common driving offences were for which (a) men and (b) women were (i) prosecuted and (ii) convicted in each constituency in England in each of the last five years for which figures are available. [85518]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The information required is not available centrally at constituency level.
Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many convicted murderers have been sentenced since the implementation of the Criminal Justice Act 2003. [86052]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Section 269 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 which relates to the determination of a minimum term in relation to mandatory life sentences came into force on 18 December 2003, and figures reported to the Home Office show that 371 persons were sentenced for murder between that date and 31 December 2004, the latest date for which sentencing information is currently available.
Mr. Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the total value was of assets seized under Operation Pentameter. [82666]
Mr. Coaker: At present it is not possible to provide total values, since operations are still ongoing. The confirmed cash seized to date totals around £200,000.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many drivers of heavy goods vehicles from overseas have (a) committed and (b) been prosecuted for traffic offences on British roads in each of the last three years. [86121]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Information is not collected centrally on offending drivers of foreign registered vehicles who breach road traffic regulations.
Miss McIntosh: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what steps he is taking to foster partnership working. [74611]
Mr. McNulty: Partnership working is central to the delivery of Home Office business. The National Community Safety Plan provides a clear statement of community safety priorities for local partners. Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnerships (CDRPs) are well established as the primary local delivery vehicle for community safety work. Earlier this year, the Government published a review of CDRPs, with the aim of further improving their effectiveness and strengthening their accountability to the communities they serve. Partnership working is also at the heartof neighbourhood policing. As part of the neighbourhood policing initiative the police will work with local partners and communities to tackle local priority issues. At the national level, the Home Office is working with stakeholders to ensure that neighbourhood policing is integrated into the wider community safety agenda.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many placements are provided for vulnerable and at risk children and young adults by the (a) private and (b) public sector. [86242]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The Youth Justice Board commissions 2,844 places for boys in 13 young offender institutions and 75 places for girls in four special units. It also commissions 274 places in secure training centres and 235 in secure children’s homes. Younger and more vulnerable sentenced young people and those subject to court-ordered secure remands are placed into secure training centres or secure children’s homes. All of the secure training centre places are provided by the private sector and all but one of the secure children’s homes are in the public sector. Eleven of the 13 young offender institutions for boys and all four special units for girls are in the public sector. There are two privately run young offender institutions.
Mr. Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the ratio of police to public was in (a) Southend and (b) each police force in(i) 1979, (ii) 1983, (iii) 1987, (iv) 1992, (v) each year from 1993 to 2004 and (vi) the last period for which figures are available. [70152]
Mr. McNulty [holding answer 22 May 2006]: The information that is available for the ratio of police to 100,000 population for each police force area is provided in the table.
| Police officer strength( 1) per 100,000 population( 2) , by police force area( 3) in each year from 1998 to 2005 | ||||||||
| Year ending 31 March: | ||||||||
| Police force area | 1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 |
| (1)
The table contains calculations based on full-time equivalent figures
for police officers which have been rounded to the nearest whole
number. Due to rounding there may be an apparent discrepancy between
totals and the sums of constituent items in these and similar tables.
The police officer strength figures used to calculate the number of
police officers per 100,000 population for the years 1998 to 2002
excludes those officers on career breaks or maternity/paternity leave.
Figures from 2003 includes those police officers on career breaks or
maternity/paternity leave. Therefore figures prior to 2003 are not
comparable with figures for 2003 onwards. (2)
Officers per 100,000 population for City of London and Metropolitan
police are combined. (3) Boundary changes on 1 April
2000 transferred some resources from the Metropolitan police to Essex,
Hertfordshire and Surrey police forces. Therefore police to population
ratios for these forces are not directly comparable for each of the
years provided in the
table. | ||||||||
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times the cross-government working group examining the transitional and ongoing financial arrangements for restructured police forces has met since January. [82366]
Mr. McNulty [holding answer 4 July 2006]: The finance working group met on 12 January, 10 February and 27 April.
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress he has made in determining the changes required to the police precept following the creation of a single strategic force for Wales. [82369]
Mr. McNulty [holding answer 4 July 2006]: There are no current plans to proceed with the enforced mergers of the four Welsh forces.
Mr. Crabb: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department who represents the Welsh Assembly on the cross-government working group which is examining the transitional and ongoing financial arrangements for restructured police forces. [82574]
Mr. McNulty [holding answer 4 July 2006]: The head of local government finance at the Welsh Assembly Government represents the Welsh Assembly Government on the police restructuring finance working group.
Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much central funding has been given to the Shropshire constabulary since 1997. [85483]
Mr. McNulty: Grant is provided to the West Mercia police authority as a whole. Shropshire is one of five administrative policing divisions within the West Mercia police area. It is for the police authority and chief officer to deploy resources in line with local policing plans. I am informed by the chief constable that a significant proportion of the force budget is deployed on a force-wide basis and is not identifiable to individual areas.
Mr. Streeter: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the requirement to form specialist anti-terror units within Devon and Cornwall constabulary continues to apply following recent restructuring decisions. [86033]
Mr. McNulty [holding answer 17 July 2006]: The chief constable is responsible for operational policing matters in Devon and Cornwall constabulary. No requirement to form specialist anti-terrorist units within Devon and Cornwall constabulary was identified prior to or following the recent police restructuring decisions.
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will meet the chief constable and acting chief constable of Cumbria and Lancashire and the chairs of their respective police authorities to discuss his proposals for merger of the forces. [86697]
Mr. McNulty [holding answer 20 July 2006]: I have met the chief constable and acting chief constable of Cumbria and Lancashire constabularies and representatives of their police authorities to discuss the proposed merger of the two forces on a number of occasions, most recently on 10 July.
Mrs.
Gillan: To ask the Secretary of State for
the Home Department who the Minister for Policing,
Security and Community Safety in his Department plans to meet in
connection with the police mergers in Wales over the next three months;
and what the dates are of those meetings which have been arranged.
[86880]
Mr. McNulty: Over the last two months I have held meetings and discussions with the four chief constables of Welsh forces, the four chairs of Welsh police authorities, the Minister for Social Justice and Regeneration, Edwina Hart AM, members of the Welsh Assembly's Social, Justice and Regeneration Committee, my right hon. friend the Secretary of State for Wales and his Minister my hon. Friend the member for Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire, the Welsh Group of Labour MPs, North Wales Labour MPs and the Welsh Local Government Association. I will hold further meetings as appropriate but no dates have yet been fixed.
Mr. Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has (a) to reduce the requirement on police officers to fill in forms and carry out other administrative tasks and (b) to establish increased clerical support for such tasks. [83674]
Mr. McNulty: We have already made good progress on reducing the bureaucratic burdens on police officers by cutting nearly 9,000 unnecessary forms; civilianising posts; rolling out the penalty notice for disorder scheme; and ensuring that forces have the best scientific and technological support like video identity parades and electronic fingerprinting.
| Percentage of population in prison establishments( 1) in England and Wales from a minority ethnic group( 2) by establishment | ||
| Prison Establishment | 30 June 2005 | 31 May 2006 |
| (1)
Percentages are calculated as proportion of prisoners recorded as BME
against total prisoners. (2) Ethnicity is recorded on
the basis of voluntary
self-declaration | ||
Mr. Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether the number of tourists to an area is considered in the annual grant calculation for police constabularies. [84737]
Mr. McNulty: No. The police funding formula was reviewed in 2005. It was concluded that data used in the tourism indicator were out of date. The use of more recent information was considered but this was unsatisfactory for inclusion in the new police formula.
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the status is of the proposed merger between the Lancashire and Cumbria constabularies; and if he will make a statement. [85903]
Mr. McNulty [holding answer 17 July 2006]: As my right hon. Friend, the Prime Minister, made clear on12 July 2006, Official Report, column 1383, the merger of Lancashire and Cumbria police forces will not be taking place.
Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate his Department has made of the cost of amalgamating Cumbria and Lancashire police authorities; and how much will be provided by his Department in the form of Pathfinder support to cover the costs of amalgamation. [82967]
Mr. McNulty [holding answer 4 July 2006]: Cumbria and Lancashire police authorities have withdrawn their agreement to voluntary amalgamation.
Mrs. Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State forthe Home Department what role the expected harmonisation of council tax precepts played in the Government’s decision not to proceed with police force mergers. [86845]
Mr. McNulty: The proposed voluntary merger between Cumbria and Lancashire constabularies could not go ahead because it was not possible to resolve all outstanding issues, including harmonisation of the council tax precept, to the satisfaction of the two authorities concerned. They therefore do not wish to proceed with their voluntary merger.
Mr. Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of Statefor the Home Department how many police officers in (a) Humberside, (b) North Yorkshire, (c) South Yorkshire and (d) West Yorkshire police authority area were involved in preparation work for the merger of the forces; how many hours of work were devoted to that work; how much the exercise cost; and if he will make a statement. [86906]
Mr. McNulty: This is a matter for the police forces and police authorities concerned and the information is not held centrally.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has to increase funding to police constabularies for more (a) police officers and (b) community support officers on the beat. [88270]
Mr. McNulty: In November last year we announced a two-year funding settlement for police authorities in England and Wales. The increase in 2006-07 enabled a broadly flat-rate increase of 3.1 per cent. for each police authority. A provisional grant increase of 3.6 per cent. was announced for 2007-08. The utilisation of all available resources is a matter for the police authorities and chief officers of police.
Mr. Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much has been spent already in relation to the proposed mergers between Lancashire and Cumbria police constabularies. [88268]
Mr. McNulty: The costs incurred by Lancashire and Cumbria police forces and police authorities are a matter for the bodies concerned and the information is not held centrally.
Jeff Ennis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much has been spent in relation to the proposed merger between the Yorkshire police forces. [88382]
Mr. McNulty: The costs incurred by Yorkshire and Humberside police forces and police authorities are a matter for the bodies concerned and the information is not held centrally.
Lembit Öpik: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much the Government have spent on the planned merger of the four Welsh police forces; and if he will make a statement. [89024]
Mr. McNulty: The costs incurred by the Welsh police forces and police authorities are a matter for the bodies concerned and the information is not held centrally.
Jenny Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much his Department allocated for the police force restructuring consultation; and if he will make a statement. [89109]
Mr. McNulty: The consultation exercise on police force mergers was part of routine Home Office business and no dedicated funds were set aside for this purpose.
Nick Herbert: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 17 May 2006, Official Report, column 1046W, on the police, what the (a) term and (b) negotiated price over the term is of each contract with the consultants employed by his Department to advise on police force amalgamations. [75222]
Mr. McNulty: The term of work for consultants employed to work on police force restructuring was15 working days (16 January to 6 February). However, the term of work for some consultants exceeded this due to additional days worked. The negotiated price for the consultants varied from firm to firm and the level and specialism of personal within the firm that was employed.
Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether funding for the proposed single Welsh police force will be equivalent to the combined total of the funding for the four Welsh police constabularies in 2006-07. [78871]
Mr. McNulty: There are no current plans to proceed with the enforced mergers of the four Welsh forces.
Mr. Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment his Department has made of the merits of the use of (a) anaesthetic, (b) malodorant and (c) calmative gases by police and security services. [85404]
John
Reid: The Home Office Scientific Development Branch has
carried out desk-based research into the area of calmatives, including
anaesthetics, and malodorants. It concluded that neither calmatives nor
malodorants currently meet the police requirements. Calmatives carry
additional health risks compared to alternative options and malodorants
do not appear to offer any tactical advantage over existing
incapacitants available to the police. Further research will only be
carried out on either of these areas if there are significant advances
in the available
technology.
Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) police officers and (b) police civilian staff each division of Greater Manchester police has had in each year since 1997. [86707]
Mr. McNulty: The available information is set outin the following table for 2003, 2004 and 2005. Comparable data on police officers and police civilian staff by BCU have only been available since 2003.
Mark Hunter: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent representations he has received in relation to police numbers in Greater Manchester; and if he will make a statement. [86708]
Mr. McNulty: No specific representations have been received in relation to police numbers in Greater Manchester.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many assaults in penal institutions there were for (a) adults, (b) children and young people in each of the last 20 years, broken down into (i) prisoner on prisoner, (ii) staff on prisoner, (iii) prisoner on staff; and what the ratio was of total assaults to the relevant prisoner population in each year. [86245]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The information requested can be provided reliably for only part of the period requested.
| Number of assaults | ||
| Prisoner on prisoner | Prisoner on officer | |
| Notes: These figures are a subset of the total number of assaults recorded in that they contain identified assailants. The recording of assaults on prisoners by staff has been unsynchronised on this system and it is not possible to produce figures that can be substantiated. | ||
| Rates of assault per 1000 | ||
| Prisoner on Prisoner | Prisoner on officer | |
| Notes: Rates are produced for only the more recent accurate assault totals. | ||
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of (a) prisoners, (b) prison officers and (c) prison governors were from non-white ethnic groups in each of the last five years, broken down by (i) prison and (ii) ethnic group; and if he will make a statement. [82936]
Mr.
Sutcliffe: Information on the percentage of minority
ethnic prisoners and prison officer grades and operational managers
(for public sector prison establishments) is provided in the following
table. Information on the ethnic breakdown from prisoners prior to June
2005 is not available on a comparable basis because the new ethnic
categories based on the 2001 Census were introduced into the prison IT
system
in 2003 and information by these new categories was available from the
middle of
2005.
| Number of visitors arrested | Number of prisoners found guilty at adjudication of smuggling rugs through visits | |
| (1)
Figures not
available | ||
Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners were released on temporary licence from each prison in the London area in each of the last 24 months; and if he will make a statement. [74012]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Information on the annual numberof releases on temporary licence from prison establishments in England and Wales between 1994 and 2004 is published in table 10.6 of Offender Management Caseload Statistics 2004. The data, which are obtained from the prison IT system, are not shown separately by month and establishment because the numbers are small and the accuracy at this level of detail cannot be guaranteed.
Nick
Herbert: To ask the Secretary of State for
the Home Department pursuant to his answer of 8 June 2006, Official
Report, column 819W, on prisons, what
categories of offences had been committed by each of the 33 foreign
national prisoners who absconded from Ford Prison in 2006; what the
term of the prison sentence was of each; whether the prisoner was
(a) being considered for enforcement proceedings by the
Immigration and Nationality Directorate, (b) going to be
deported and (c) remains at large in each case; and on what date
each escaped.
[77861]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The information requested is notheld centrally and could be provided only at a disproportionate cost.
Mr. Garnier: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to his answer of 4 July 2006, Official Report, column 1056W, on prisons, what estimate he has made of the cost of answering the question. [84671]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Just over 3,100 prisoners are currently being held in open prisons. To examine each prisoner's record would result in a resource cost well in excess of the £600 limit that Government Departments are advised is considered disproportionate.
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people in prison (a) have mental health problems, (b) are veterans and (c) are veterans with mental health problems; and if he will make a statement. [84854]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The prevalence of mental health problems among prisoners is considerably higher than for the general population. The most reliable evidence comes from the 1997 ONS study of psychiatric morbidity among prisoners which found that 90 per cent. of prisoners have at least one significant mental health problem, including personality disorder, psychosis, neurosis, alcohol misuse and drug dependence (Singleton et al, 1998).
References:
Singleton, N., Meltzer, R., Gatward, R. with Coid. J., Deasy, D (1998).
Psychiatric morbidity among Prisoners in England and Wales.
Office for National Statistics.
Dandeker, C., Wessely, S., Iverson, A. and Ross, J. (2003).
Improving the Delivery of Cross Departmental Support and Services for Veterans.
A joint report of The Department of War Studies and the Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London (KCL). Available on line:
http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/AboutDefence/CorporatePublications/Reports/ReportsForVeterans/ImprovingTheDeliveryOfCrossDepartmentalSupportAndServicesForVeterans.htm.
Mr.
Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the
Home Department what the (a) rules, (b) instructions
and (c) administrative practice are within the Prison Service
governing the use of (i) handcuffs and (ii) other physical constraints
on pregnant women attending maternity and other appointments in
hospitals outside prison; and if he will make a statement.
[85570]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The policy on the use of mechanical restraints is contained in the Prison Service’s national security framework. Any use of restraints is based upon a thorough security risk assessment of the individual prisoner and this includes pregnant women. Where a need to use restraints is identified, the general expectation is that the restraints will be removed upon arrival at the hospital and not re-applied until the prisoner is ready to be returned to prison.
Mr. Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of intensive treatment programmes for prisoners with moderate to severe drug misuse problems and related offending behaviour in the West Midlands. [85589]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Seven intensive drug treatment programmes for prisoners are delivered in the West Midlands area. Research shows that intensive drug treatment programmes can reduce re-offending by 10-15 per cent. below predicted levels, where effective aftercare arrangements are made.
Mr. Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment he has made of the availability of class A drugs in prison establishments; and what action he is taking to reduce the availability of drugs in prisons. [85591]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The best measure of drug misuse in prisons is provided by the random mandatory drug testing programme. The percentage positive rate for Class A drugs in 2005-06 was 4 per cent.
Mr. Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prosecutions there have been for supplying illegal drugs in prisons in the West Midlands in each year since 1998. [85592]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Decisions to prosecute are taken bythe Crown Prosecution Service and the number of prosecutions undertaken is not collated by NOMS. The number of visitors arrested on suspicion of supplying drugs and the number of prisoners found guilty at adjudication of offences involving drug smuggling through visits in prisons in the West Midlands is given in the following table.
| Number | ||
| Visitors arrested | Prisoners found guilty at adjudication of smuggling drugs through visits | |
| (1)
Figures not
available. | ||
Mr. Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer of 13 July 2006, Official Report, column 2031W, on prisons, what estimate he has made of the cost of seeking the information necessary to answer the question, broken down by main cost area. [86911]
Mr. Sutcliffe: To obtain the information requested, each recaptured prisoner’s file would have to be examined by the prison now holding them and enquiries made with both the police and the courts to check whether the prisoner is subject to further proceedings. The estimated resource cost of such enquiries would be in excess of the £600 limit recommended by HM Treasury.
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisons have (a) permanent and (b) temporary accommodation providing facilities for visitors. [86956]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Records held centrally on facilitiesfor visitors do not differentiate between permanentand temporary accommodation. In excess of 130 establishments have access to recognised facilities for visitors. It is recognised that these vary considerably in the amenities and the services which they are able to provide.
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what his policy is on the provision of facilities for visitors to HM prisons; and if he will make a statement. [86957]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Prison Service policy states that all visits should take place in the most humane conditions possible, with regard to the physical environment in which visits take place as well as the treatment of visitors.
Mr. Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many times illegal drugs have been found in each prison in London in each of the past five years. [87147]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The Prison Service does not hold centrally data on drugs' finds broken down by type of drug.
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases of suspected fraud have been investigated in (a) each London prison and (b) the London area office of the prison service in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [87439]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The following table relates to formal investigations commissioned in the London area (including by London area office), due to suspected fraud, in each of the past five financial years.
| Investigations commissioned in the London area | ||||||
| 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | 2006-07 | Total | |
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what proportion of managed moves within the Prison Service for the year from1 April 2005 to 31 March 2006 were approved by (a) the Director of Operations, (b) the Deputy Director General, (c) the Director General and (d) by other officials. [87441]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The official who approves a managed move within the Prison Service is not recorded centrally and information could be collected only at disproportionate cost. The level at which such moves are approved is set out in a Prison Service Order (number 8110).
Mr. Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Prison Service Fraud Response Plan was last updated; and if he will place a copy of the plan in the Library. [87442]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The Fraud Response Plan forms part of the Prison Service Anti-Fraud Strategy, which was last updated in September 2004 and published as a Prison Service Order (PSO) on 8 October 2004. The Prison Service Audit Committee reviews the anti-fraud strategy annually.
Mr. Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what action he has taken in response to the latest report from HM chief inspector of prisons into conditions at HM Prison Lincoln. [66570]
Mr.
Sutcliffe: The Prison Service has produced an action plan,
which responds to each recommendation in Her Majesty's chief
inspectorate of prison’s report. The action plan details whether
the Prison Service accepts the recommendation, what will be done to
implement it, the person or department responsible
and a timescale. This action plan will be updated approximately 12
months after the report’s publication date of 15 February
2006.
Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the expenditure on staffing in the Hertfordshire probation area in 2004-05 was. [16233]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The total salary costs recorded in the accounts of Hertfordshire Probation Board for 2004-05, are £6,194,000, including employer’s national insurance and pension contributions.
Mr. Francois: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many young offenders have come into contact with the Reading Training for Work Programme in each year since 2003. [84810]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Her Majesty’s Young Offenders Institute Reading do not keep separate records of the number of young offenders who have come into contact with the National Grid Young Offender Programme.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many cases of ritual abuse have (a) been reported and (b) resulted in (i) arrests and (ii) charges in each London borough in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [87332]
Mr. McNulty: The information requested is not available centrally. Ritual abuse cannot be separately identified from offences against the person in either the recorded crime statistics or the court proceedings statistics.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many (a) robberies and (b) burglaries were reported in each London borough in each of the last five years; and how many resulted in a conviction. [86792]
Mr. McNulty: Data collected centrally do not track individual offences to conclusion. Recorded offences are counted on the basis of crimes committed and are available by financial year for each London borough. Convictions are counted on the basis of offenders and are available by calendar year for each London court.
The available information is given in the tables.
| Offences recorded by the Metropolitan Police for each Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership | |||||
| Burglary | |||||
| 2001-02 | ( 1) 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
| Robbery | |||||
| 2001-02 | ( 1) 2002-03 | 2003-04 | 2004-05 | 2005-06 | |
| (1)
Because of the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard in
April 2002 figures before and after that date are not directly
comparable. | |||||
Mr. Salmond: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department in how many cases in England and Wales fingerprint evidence has been challenged on the basis of the misidentifications made by the Scottish Criminal Records Office in the case of Shirley McKie and David Asbury. [74091]
Joan Ryan: We are unable to answer this question as the information requested is not recorded.
Mr. Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many sea-going vessels were stolen from around the coast of the UK in the last 12 months for which figures are available; and how many were recovered. [86719]
Mr. McNulty: The information requested is not available centrally.
Mr. Cameron: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what structure has been put in place for the renewal and re-evaluation of door supervisor licences. [82835]
John Reid: The Security Industry Authority (SIA) will not be making any major changes to the SIA licence core competency specifications for the first round of licence renewal, which commences in April 2007 with the door supervisor sector.
Dr. Starkey: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many applications for door supervisors’ licences are waiting for (a) approval and (b) processing by the Security Industry Authority. [81126]
Mr. Coaker: On the 5 July, there were 8,845 licence applications from door supervisors in the SIA’s processing system. There was also a total of 4,694 applications from all licensable sectors waiting to enter the processing system, but it is not possible to calculate how many of these were from door supervisors because they had not been opened.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the average minimum sentence was, before being considered for parole, for people convicted of (a) kidnapping, (b) rape and (c) sexual assault of children in each of the last five years. [79053]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Information on the average custodial sentence lengths for determinate sentences for these offences is contained in the table.
| Average custodial sentence length imposed (excluding life) for kidnapping, rape and sexual assault of persons under 16, all courts, England and Wales, 2000-04 | |||||
| Months | |||||
| Offence | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 |
| (1)
Not shown separately as less than 100 persons sentenced to custody.
Source: RDS
NOMS. | |||||
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what average sentence was served for (a) sexual assault, (b) rape of a minor and (c) rape in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement. [86331]
Mr. Sutcliffe: Data on average time served, which are obtained from the Prison IT system, are not available separately for specific offences as accuracy at this level of detail cannot be guaranteed.
| Average length of custodial sentences (excluding life) for sexual assault, rape of a minor and rape All courts England and Wales 2000-04 | |||||
| Average sentence length (months) | |||||
| Offence | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 |
| (1)
Indecent assault prior to
2004. Source: RDS NOMS | |||||
Bob Russell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he last met representatives of the National Organisation for Rape Crisis and Sex Abuse Victims. [86339]
Mr. Coaker: The Rape Crisis Co-ordination Group is represented on the Stakeholder Advisory Group on Sexual Violence, which is chaired by Ministers from the Home Office and the Department of Health. The Group met for the first time on the 28 June 2006.
Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what recent representations he has received on a revision to the Statutory Charge document on the Removal, Storage and Disposal of Vehicles; and if he will make a statement. [87536]
Mr.
McNulty: We receive regular correspondence from a range of
interested parties on various issues related to the charges. These
include the interpretation and application of the charges, whether we
intend to review them, the nature and timing of any review,
suggestions for change and the contractual arrangements between removal
operators and the
police.
Alistair Burt: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what timescale he has set for review of statutory fees relating to vehicle removal, storage and disposal; and if he will make a statement. [87537]
Mr. McNulty: We have recently informed the parties chiefly concerned of our intention to conduct a wide ranging review of the charges for vehicle removal, storage and disposal, and indicated that we would welcome initial views. In preparing proposals on which we will consult all the parties, we will take into account any such view, together with views expressed in previous discussions, correspondence and meetings. We have set no formal timescale for the work which will proceed as swiftly as resources permit.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people were convicted of terrorist acts relating to the Irish Republican Movement between 1976 and 2000 in (a) Great Britain and (b) Northern Ireland. [86810]
Mr. McNulty: The information requested on convictions is not held by the Home Office. However, the publication “Statistics on the Operation of Prevention of Terrorism Legislation” includes statistics in connection with Northern Irish terrorism. This publication is available on the Science, Research and Statistics part of the Home Office website for the period 1979 to 2000.
Mr. Spring: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people (a) arrested, (b) charged and (c) convicted under the Terrorism Act 2000 were from (i) Suffolk and (ii) the East of England. [85545]
Mr. McNulty: The statistics on arrests, charges and convictions under the Terrorism Act 2000 (TACT) are not broken down in the way requested. However, statistics compiled from police records show that between 11 September 2001 and 31 March 2006, 997 people were arrested under TACT.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many personal computers have been seized by each police service from suspects detained under the Terrorism Act 2003. [86806]
Mr. McNulty: This information is not held by the Home Office.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many people have been convicted for ticket touting in each of the last five years; and what the average sentence (a) given and (b) served was in each year. [87307]
Mr. Coaker: Data for the 2005-06 football seasonare currently being collated and will be published later this year. The following table shows the number of convictions and cautions for ticket touting offences in the previous four seasons. Information on sentences imposed following conviction is not available centrally.
| Season | Convictions | Cautions |
Mr. Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what meetings (a) he and (b) his officials have had with representatives of the United States' Department of Justice in the last 12 months. [86489]
John Reid: Since my appointment as Home Secretary on 5 May 2006,1 have not yet had an opportunity to meet the US Attorney-General.
David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to his answer of 19 June 2006, Official Report, column 1661W, on violent crime, how many violent crimes were recorded in 2004. [80425]
Mr. McNulty: There were 1,175,363 violent crimes recorded by the police in England and Wales in 2004. Data on recorded crime are not directly comparable with court proceedings data given in the previous answer.
Mr. Don Foster: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what plans he has (a) to increase visa charges in 2007-08 and (b) to assess the potential impact of such an increase on the UK's income from tourism. [88784]
Dr. Howells: Visa application fees are kept under constant review. UKvisas has no plans to increase its fees in the current financial year and will review fees for 2007-08 later in the year. No decisions have been taken on fee levels in 2007-08. UKvisas is mandated by HM Treasury to recoup costs through fees without burdening the UK taxpayer. The Government need to ensure it is charging a fair rate for its services, and that it continues to offer value to those that travel tothe UK.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many members of staff were employed in the (a) private and (b) public sector in the care of vulnerable and at risk children and young adults in custody in each of the last 20 years as a percentage of the custody workforce. [86987]
Mr. Sutcliffe: I refer my hon. Friend to the answerI gave him on 18 July 2006 Official Report, volume 449, Column 411W.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost was of the inquiry into the death of Zahid Mubarek. [86246]
Mr. Sutcliffe: The total budget allocated to the Inquiry was £4.2 million; taking into account all related costs borne directly by the Government, the total cost of the Inquiry was £5.2 million.
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what measures he will take to implement the recommendations of the inquiry into the death of Zahid Mubarek. [86247]
Mr. Sutcliffe: I refer my hon. Friend to the written ministerial statement made by the Home Secretaryon the publication of the report on 29 June 2006, Official Report, column 19WS, to which was attached the Governments initial response to the report. Inthe statement the Government committed itself to providing a full response to the reports 88 recommendations within two months.
Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what advertising campaigns the Department ran between 2000 and June 2004; and what the (a) date and (b) cost was of each. [87052]
Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales (1) what assessment he has made of the impact of people living in caravan parks on (a) police, (b) health, (c) social service, (d) educational spending and (e) special educational needs spending; [88286]
John Healey: I have been asked to reply.
http://www.local.odpm.gov.uk/finance/0607/lgfr067s/contents.pdf http://www.local.odpm.gov.uk/finance/0607/lgfr078s/contents.pdf.
Mr. Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many criminal offences his Department has created by Orders in Council in each year since 1997. [88464]
Mr. Hain: The Wales Office was established on 1 July 1999 following devolution. Since that time, no criminal offences have been created by Orders in Council.
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